


Lazarus

by DarkSammyProdigy02



Category: Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (TV 2012)
Genre: BAMF Leonardo (TMNT), But a scary one, Dead Dove: Do Not Eat, Doctor Donatello (TMNT), Gen, Good Older Sibling Leonardo (TMNT), Implied/Referenced Suicide, Leonardo (TMNT) is a Dork, Leonardo is feed up with everyone’s bullshit, M/M, Multiple Deaths, Protective Donatello (TMNT), Protective Leonardo (TMNT), Protective Raphael (TMNT), Triggers, Worried Raphael (TMNT), leocentric
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-02-11
Updated: 2021-02-11
Packaged: 2021-03-01 00:27:06
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 7
Words: 51,419
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23306029
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/DarkSammyProdigy02/pseuds/DarkSammyProdigy02
Summary: “You're underwater...deep, deep underwater. You’re drowning. Do you want to come back up?”“Yes.”“Then take a deep breath and...redux.”Leonardo sacrifices his life for his brothers when he is forced to go down with the Technodrome to hold back the wrathful Kraang Prime. He accepts his fate when the water rises and he slowly, but surely begins to run out of air. But long after his vision has darkened and his heart has gone still in his chest, he wakes up physically unscathed as if he had never died. The blue cladded turtle goes on to discover that he has unfathomable abilities with an unknown origin - and that is what he must go on to discover.
Relationships: Donatello & Casey Jones & Leonardo & Michelangelo & April O'Neil & Raphael (TMNT), Donatello & Leonardo & Michelangelo & Raphael (TMNT), Leonardo & Splinter (TMNT), Leonardo & Tiger Claw (TMNT)
Comments: 30
Kudos: 136





	1. The Reaping

**Author's Note:**

> Hey, guys! For those of you who follow me already, this work will definitely be unusual 😂 I haven’t written TMNT fanfiction in nearly four years, but I got bored and watched a few episodes. Now, of course, my head is exploding with ideas. But don’t worry, I won’t let this story (and potentially others) clash with my WIPS. Anyway, I hope everyone enjoys it! I’ll try and update at least a week after every new chapter.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Leonardo drowns, then wakes up. It’s a hard thing to brush off, but shell is he trying.

One of the first works of humankind Leonardo had ever read (not counting comic books) was an old torn and frayed, waterlogged bible he had found drifting in one of the many winding sewer tunnels. Even at a young age, he had liked to flip through it and try to break down its narratives as his wide eyes scanned its yellowing pages. Master Splinter would oftentimes sit with him for long periods after their training had concluded, discussing with his eldest son what he had read and the ideas that had sprung forth from the words. Donatello had always been opposed to this practice for he could not quite grasp the idea of reading any material that was not strictly educational. The blue classes turtle had politely disagreed, for he saw the words as educational in a different way, for the words (true or not) taught valuable life lessons that applied even thousands of years after it was written. Of course, since the lessons were not focused on some advanced form of biology or higher-level mathematics, the lesson was still considered useless to his younger brother.

Leonardo can easily recall the story that he had revisited the most often. The resurrection of Lazarus. Even present day he can recall the passages word for word: "Jesus called in a loud voice, 'Lazarus, come out!' The dead man came out, his hands and feet wrapped with strips of linen and a cloth around his face." And Lazarus was what was going through Leonardo's mind as he watched the final escape pod launch from the Technodrome. He feels the give of his youngest brother's kusarigama chain, more than he hears it, reverberating up his worst through his shoulders as he plummets backward with a cry of pain. Kraang Prime charged forward with his spindly arms flinging towards the quickly fading escape pod in the distance, until the pod was a dot fading away in the distance, and quickly out of sight. Water is already midway up his body, and he can hear the gargantuan alien's wails of their shared demise, yet in those precious few heartbeats he had before the ship went under, he wasn't afraid. He knew his death was inevitable, not even just at that moment, but in the life, he lived because the world, his family, always had to come first.

"No, no. Kraang Prime will not perish - Kraang Prime cannot!"

"You can, and you will. We both will," Leonardo coughs out, his lips trembling as they pull into a strained smile as he gives a mock salute with two fingers against his temple, "Looks like we're going down with the ship, captain."

Krang Prime didn't hold the same disregard for death and charged blindly, screeching as it wildly swiped its spindly metal limbs at the blue in cladded turtle. He managed to dodge the first two sloppy stabs in his direction, his blue mask tails whipping behind his head as he ducked beneath the cylindrical arms, then the sharpened point of one of the alien's legs thrust into his arm, twisting there, before tearing out with a nearly blinding spurt of blood that splashed over his face. A bloodcurdling scream tore through his throat, bile rising in his throat as he stumbled backward with his nearly severed arm hanging loosely at his side and his spewing blood joined the quickly rising water. He weakly held his trembling palm to the massive tear in his arm, feeling the hot hours of blood pulsate past his groping fingers, and he gulps thickly as a strangled moan of pain escapes his tightly gritted teeth. The warmth of his blood gushed forth from in between the tiniest cracks between his fingers and he went to his knees, breathing raggedly. At this point, the water was at his mid-torso, sloshing around him in great, angry waves. His blood diluted into a light pink as it joined the rising swathes of frigid water. 

"No, no! Stupid, monkey-blooded, turtle! Look what you've done... No! You don't deserve death," The alien snarls in the distance, "You don't get death. You get something far worse...yes...Krang Prime will live, and so shall you. So shall you, pathetic reptile."

Leonardo was fully enveloped by the dark body of water filling the entire space of the sinking space ship. The incredible pressure compressed his chest, forcing his lungs to burn as if on fire. His heart began hammering, increasing in intensity and speed, like a bird trapped in a cage. The blue cladded turtle's throat seared in agony with the rising pressure of trapped air and his head began pounding with panic, threatening to explode any second. 

He could hold his breath much longer than the average human, but not for an eternity. He had held his breath as long as he could, too long in fact. Giving in to that basic need for oxygen, he gave in to the pressure and took a breath of air, only to engulf a gush of salty water. He tasted the filthy ocean, foul and polluted, before opening his mouth again, this time to scream, he lets out a string of bubbles. Flashing splotches danced in front of his vision and he couldn't even tell if his eyes were opened or closed.

"Raph, Mikey, Don! Help, " Leonardo screamed unintelligibly through the roaring torrents of water that tossed him back and forth in the depths like a ragdoll. Blood continued to pulsate from his gaping wound in his arm, spreading a light hue of pink over his vision as he continues screaming, "H...h...help! P...please...!"

Leonardo's heart was beating wildly in panic. The urgency for air was more apparent than ever. The splotches of color seemed to flash in unison with his final frantic heartbeats, but as it abruptly stuttered to a halt, he succumbs to darkness. He exhaled his last, definitive breath, which rose in a fascinating stream of bubbles back to the surface from whence it came. The last thing he hears is the gargantuan alien's final taunts, "Kraang knows this...you, turtle will never earn the sweet release of death. No, you'll never...ever..."

———

"Leo- _ohhhh_."

"Leo! Leo, don't do this to me! Don't you do it — damn you," One voice snarls harshly in time with a hand frantically patting the side of his face," Donnie! Donnie, do somethin'! He's still ain't breathin'! Why ain't he breathin' damn it? Damn it!"

There was pressure on Leonardo's chest, shifting beneath the plates of his plastron as his lungs swell with air, then deflate again. The crack of the mutant turtle's sternum as it breaks free of its surrounding ribs is sickening. He is sure whoever is performing the chest compressions feels it more than he hears it, reverberating through their wrists and up to their shoulders. His prone body gives unnaturally as the intertwined hands continue pushing rhythmically. A pair of heated, wet lips settle over the blue cladded turtle's and a heavy, warm breath that tickles his lips forcefully pushes more air into his lungs, and there's a panicking shout of, "It's not working!"

"Oh, no...no," A soft feminine voice whimpers off to the side, "I-It's all m-my fault... I'm so, so sorry, Leo... _Leo_?"

There was a muffled sob, a warm hand cradling his own as another voice squeaks, "Please, please, Leo. You have to come back...you just have to..." A bead of water hit the side of his snout and the fingers curled around his hand contracted as a whimper fumbles out, "N-no, no, Don! You can't stop! You _can't_ stop...! P-please, n-no! He's not gone! He's not —!"

"Don't you dare stop, Don - You ain't givin' up on him —!"

Leonardo abruptly surges upwards, water spewing from his lips as he bursts into a violent fit of coughing, and his thick, green fingers claw at his throat. It feels as if his lungs are replaced by a gapingly empty hole in his chest he takes in greedy gulps of air, his head pounding. He can feel his muscles straining and the thoughts in his head turn from wild, mindless panic into a dizzy confusion. Donatello is sprawled out on his knees in front of him, his eyes bloodshot and glassy as he pants harshly, clutching at his chest. April has her arm draped over the purple cladded turtle's shoulder and she is visibly crying in relief, her hand cupping her mouth. Raphael pounces forward and engulfs him in his sinewy arms, squeezing what little air he had from his lungs as he laughs nearly hysterically, and he used one hand to massage his shell real slow, trying to soothe his blue cladded brother. Michelangelo collapsed against his side, tears bursting from his baby blue hues like water from a dam, spilling down his face, and he feels the muscles of his chin tremble like a small child's. 

"You idiot — You complete and total _fuckin_ ' idiot," Raphael grits out, his eyes clenching shut tightly as he felt his older brother's prone form melt against him as his muscles lost their tension, "You ever even think of throwin' yourself away in some stupid act of heroism like that again, and I swear, I'll set a new record for most teeth lost in a single punch! You'll be pickin' up your teeth with broken fingers!"

Michelangelo sniffles as he gives a wet chuckle, adding jokingly," And say what you will 'bout Raph but he is a turtle of his word."

Leonardo's fingers shakily graze the area the gaping wound in his arm had been. His mind replays the scene of his life fluid draining from his mangled arm as his leaf green skin took on the pallor of a corpse. The blue cladded turtle ran one finger up and down the length of his arms, a deep, perplexed frown tugging at his lips. But there had been so much blood - dark crimson, with a discreet, metallic scent. It had splashed into the swirling torrents of water, right through his fingertips; now there was no blood to be seen. Distantly he wonders if it had ever truly been there, or if had been an addled apparition from his oxygen-starved brain. He let out another shuddering breath, the chatter of his companions turning into a low hum in the back of his mind.

"Leo...Leonardo? Leonardo," Donatello exclaims worriedly, his fingers squeezing his shoulder as he gives him a light shake.

Leonardo slowly blinks, raising his head to face his younger brother as he mumbles, "H-huh, w-wha...w...?" 

"I think you're starting to go out of it again," Donatello frets as his brows knit together and his lips form a thin line. He whips his head around to his other two brothers, telling them in a grave voice, "Help me get him up. He doesn't need to be walking, and we need to get him back to the lair so I can give him a full check-up. I don't know if he's quite out of danger yet." 

Leonardo shakes his head, denying feebly, "N-no... I-I just need..." He reaches his hands forward, batting away his huddled younger brothers as he attempts to rise to his feet, "I-I just need...need...n..."

The blue cladded turtle staggered backward, his mind swirling, and his breaths shallow, until he fell into the waiting arms of his red cladded brother, sending them both to the rounded floor of the escape pod with a resounding 'thud'. Ocean water splashed over the curved sides of the pod and every new sore stings with the salt being washed in, making the katana-wielding turtle let out a pained hiss. His younger brother is spewing curses under his breath, his heated breath beating against the side of his neck as he shifted beneath him, attempting to situate them both upright against the side of the pod.

"Jeez, Louise — _Leo_ ," Raphael barks out, agitated. His meaty hands are scrabbling at his older brother's yellow platted chest, slipping over the moistened surface as he attempts to haul the pliable mutant turtle into a perpendicular position.

Donatello worriedly remarks, "Keep him in an upright position, Raph. His airway needs to be clear."

"Yeah, yeah! I know the procedures like the back of my damn hand, Don! We've only been gettin' drilled on 'em since we were like, what? Five," The red cladded turtle shoots back, before redirecting his attention to his older brother, "Sewer livin' at its finest, heh. C'mon, bro. Yah remember what Master Splinter taught us, huh? Of course, you do, Teacher's Pet. Now, c'mon, just like he told us — deep, slow breathes. There you go."

The blue cladded turtle nods weakly, inhaling long and deep, before slowly exhaling through his nostrils; his yellow platted chest rises and falls with the sedative qualities of a lullaby. He suddenly bent over as sharply as if he'd been punched in the stomach as violent coughing wracks his body. His eyelids flutter as he stumbles out, "C-col...c-cold...d..."

Donatello kneels beside his eldest brother, slotting two of his fingers over his wrist between the bone and the tendon over his radial artery. "Go and paddle with the others, Raph. You're the strongest of us and we don't need to be wasting any time," He orders, his voice stiff. His facial features are uncharacteristically stony as he fumbles for his phone, pulling up a timer as he keeps his fingers on his older brother's wrist, "I need to be keeping an eye on his vitals. Just hang in there for a little while longer. Okay, Leo? Just hang in there. Everything is going to be okay."

"...Everything...is...going...to...be...okay..."

**One Month Later**

Raphael heard quiet, throaty whimpers of distress as he eased open the door a hair, and with one eye aligned with the crack between the door and the doorframe, he saw his older brother thrashing around on the bed, clawing indiscriminately at his thick comforter and himself. When he fumbled with the light switch, the red cladded turtle forced himself to take a few seconds to calm down before he sprinted towards the twin-sized bed. 

"Leo," Raphael called out in a panicked voice as he hunched beside his brother in his bed, his hands fumbling for the latter's shoulders, "Leo, it's just a dream. Wake up, damn it! Leo! Leo — "

Leonardo jerks himself onto his side with a strangled cry, his eyes clenched tightly shut, then he balls his fist, sloppily throwing it in the general direction of his younger brother. Raphael catches the fist in his palm with a pained grunt, only to have his brother's free hand curl into a shaky fist and catch the edge of his jaw, but the slight brush of knuckles was enough to snap his head to the side.

"N...n-n...no! P-please," Leonardo chokes out and he tries to bat aside the thick, three-fingered hands hovering over him, "No! No, help me! Help me!"

"Leo! Leonardo, damn it, stop! It's me! Stop," The red cladded turtle shouts in alarm, raveling his thick, green fingers, grabbing a hold of both of the latter's wrists. Then he pushes his full weight forward, pinning his older brother's wrists on either side of the mussed mattress. 

Finally, whatever Leonardo was seeing in his mind seemed to have gone as far as it was going to; the mutant turtle sat up with a sharp gasp, nearly colliding his head against his younger brother's. His eyes are wide and staring straight ahead, seeing something that wasn't there. Raphael cautiously released one wrist, so he could settle that same hand tentatively against his brother's shell and wait to see if he would be able to snap him out of his haze or if he'd just earn himself another shiner. Panting heavily, the blue cladded turtle's eyes swivel upwards to settle on his younger brother and a bead of sweat dribbles down the side of his face as his entire form stiffens. He doesn't realize it but his chin is trembling and his lips are parted, letting out quick, erratic breaths of air. 

"Raph," Leonardo gulps, his voice quiet and exhausted. Slowly the tension fell away from his shoulders, his arms relaxing, "I don't...I don't feel..."

"Leo?" Raphael releases his other wrist and leans back, allowing his brother to fully sit up in the bed.

The blue cladded turtle croaks out, "I couldn't breathe. My chest...shit...it still hurts. It hurts so bad," His chest heaved, heart hammering against his ribs so hard he was frightened that it might burst clean out of its bony cage," W...water...so much water. I couldn't...I can never..." 

" _You're drowning_ ," A voice hisses in the distance, carrying as if it were in the wind. 

Leonardo clenches his eyes shut for a brief moment, his fingers frantically raking across his yellow platted chest as an involuntary shiver tears like broken glass down his spine. He is soaked in a thin sheen of too-cold sweat against too-hot by contrast skin. His breathing slowed by increments, breaths becoming less throaty and gasping as the realization hit him that he could in fact breath again; that his lungs were not filled to the brim with salty seawater. The blue cladded turtle clutched the edge of his sheet tightly against his plastron like a shield, as though the simple piece of cloth could protect him from the flashes of the nightmare that still washed and rolled over him like frigid waves. The red cladded turtle's brow creases as he slowly lifts his hand from his left, tentatively extending towards his older brother, before he quickly yanks it back, curling his fingers into a tight fist. He settles the hand on his lap, and his teeth grind together behind his thin-pressed lips.

"Bad dream," Raphael asks as if the answer was not already quite evident.

Leonardo sniffs lightly, answering in a scratchy voice, "Uh...y-yeah. Yeah, bad dream. That's all it was. I-I'm...I'm sorry for waking you, Raph."

Raphael nods slowly to feign understanding and affirms to his older brother, "You didn't. I was already up, so it's no big deal, okay? Do you need anythin'?"

Another mute side to side shake of Leonardo's head accompanied by an unfocused gaze that still lingered behind his younger brother. After a beat, the younger of the two turtles is gone, the door closing shut softly behind him to signal his abrupt exit. The blue cladded turtle exhales heavily as if a weight had been lifted from his chest, lowering his head so that his eye line rests on his feet. He frowns deeply and grabs his ankle, pulling his sinewy green leg close to him to inspect the bottoms of his three-toed feet. A fresh sheen of dirt that could only be accumulated topside marred his feet. He pushed the quickly accumulating questions to the back of his mind, instead pushing himself up from his bed to go to his feet, watching as the sheets that had been gathered around him protectively fell from around his form and pooled onto the floor. 

Leonardo dreams of his near-death experience more often than he cares to admit to his younger brothers, for he wakes up panting and soaked in sweat nearly every night. But other strange dreams plague him; dreams he tries to push into the back of his mind. Master Splinter tries to provide a sizable open-ear for his eldest son, but the blue cladded turtle does not feel he should voice his frankly ridiculous concerns to him or anyone else in his makeshift family. His brothers and their human friends worried for him, he felt it in their lingering gazes when he arose in the early hours, long before the sun was set to rise, and immediately went on a grueling training run in the sewers. He often returned mere minutes before their scheduled morning training was set to begin, with salty droplets flowing down his sinewy form, dripping onto the bamboo mats as he sits beside his waiting brothers to regain his breath. Long after training had concluded with an hour of light meditation, the blue cladded turtle remained in the dojo, requesting extra pointers from his sensei or lingering on his own to run through what they had gone through that day. He only exited for a brief meal that only satiated the persistent growling of his stomach, or to hastily grab a bottle of water. The dojo had become his only sanctuary in the newly crowded lair, for it was one of the few viable ways the katana-wielding turtle could avoid his persistently nagging brothers.

The one factor Leonardo hadn't accounted for was the new semi-residents of the lair; April and Casey. Leonardo was already wary of April out of habit, though he sensed that it hurt her, for he was the only one of the turtle brothers that had brushed aside her every attempt at building a friendship. The blue cladded turtle had never been deliberately mean to the human girl, for he had no personal grudge against her, and quickly realized how much her friendship meant to his younger brothers. She served as the fragile thread that connected the mutant turtles that were forced to linger in the shadows, to the surface world. For the katana-wielding turtle, it was just a matter of whether or not he could stand to grow close to another living being, and have one more weight on his shell in battle. And he never saw the point in creating ties with a world that would gladly sever them. Then there was Casey (the new one) that he especially avoided, for the same reasons and many more. The main one being that the human reminded the katana-wielding turtle far too much of his hot-blooded younger brother, and the last thing he needed was two temperamental meatheads breathing down his neck at every opportunity.

So, needless to say, when April and Casey decided to hover behind Leonardo, watching him with rapt fascination while he was practicing blind-folded sparring techniques, his younger brothers were almost short two human friends. His mind was already astray, still lingering over already fading dreams of crashing waves and diluted blood. So when the blue cladded turtle had felt that faint prickle on his neck that signaled an intruder, he had only barely managed to halt his swing with the wooden practice sword clenched in his grip, just a mere millimeter from the human boy's windpipe. The katana-wielding turtle pinched two fingers around the knot that held his blue mask in place and he began to rotate the mask until the slits were situated over his rapidly blinking blue hues. His gaze fell on the two humans, his quizzical expression reflected in his unmoving blue pools.

April speaks up, her lips forcing a smile onto her face as she sheepishly comes out with, "Oh—uh, sorry to startle you, Leo! Probably should have announced ourselves, huh?" 

"Oh, there's no need to apologize. It's Casey that would be having to take his food through a straw," Leonardo quips dryly, a smirk pulling at his lips. His fingers twitch around his blue mask, starting to rotate the cloth to conceal his eyes once more, but he halts his movements, questioning the two humans, "Uh, okay then. Was there, uh, something you needed?"

April gives an affirmative nod, telling the mutant turtle as she clasps her hands together, "Yeah, actually. Casey was kind of hoping to spar with you," She goes on to add, "Raph has been helping him with a little bit of ninjitsu training here and there, and so have I, but he was kind of hoping to practice with a different opponent."

"And what did my brother have to say about this," Leonardo inquires, amused. 

"When I brought it up with Raph he just about laughed in my stinkin' face, and then went on some spiel about how I'm not ready to face a full-fledged ninja in a no-holds-barred fight. Now, there's a pool going around on whether or not I could beat you one-on-one," Casey abruptly spurts out, his jaw clenched in visible annoyance. 

"I might have put down a few bucks," The human girl admits as she bites at her lip. The human boy shoots her a glare, but she only shrugs in turn, tucking her hands into her pockets.

The blue cladded turtle presses his lips together, his nostrils flaring as he exhales noisily. "Look, I might be willing to go against you in a light sparring match just to see what forms you've retained during your lessons, but I'm not comfortable going against you in an actual full-scale fight," The mutant turtle expounds plainly as he turns his shell to the pair, making his way towards the weapons rack, "Not until you've had more extensive and routine training."

"Look, dude, I've been fightin' all my life, and I've never needed some ninnie-jut-stew trainin' or whatever to get a guy on the ground, okay," The vigilante barks back in response, his dark eyes narrowed at the mutant turtle and his lips curled into a deep frown.

"First off, it's pronounced: nin-jit-su," The katana-wielding turtle points out, his voice placating as he situated the wooden practice sword on the rack, "And I don't doubt that. I'm simply stating that if you're wishing to further study ninjitsu then it isn't wise to go picking fights with —"

With an arrogant smirk, Casey launched himself at the unsuspecting form of the retreating Leonardo with his hand raised in a curled fist. Except, Leonardo turned out not to be quite so unsuspecting. He could have dodged with ease and then continued his retreat had it not been for the smirk. That little rise in the corner of his mouth combined with the cool detachment in his eyes sealed his fate in the mutant turtle's mind. Turning at the last moment, the blue cladded turtle was able to grab the human's arm just as before the blow landed, and using his momentum against him, threw him over his shoulder. Then, the katana-wielding turtle followed him to the floor and smoothly pinned him in place, his bulky, three-fingered hands restraining his arms over his head.

"Casey," April exclaims, appalled.

"You know, one of the basic foundations of ninjitsu is the ability to attack undetected," Leonardo mentions in a nonchalant tone, cocking a single brow at the human pinned beneath him. The mutant turtle finds his feet, releasing his hold on the human as he goes on to further state, "Maybe a little more practice."

Casey shakily goes to his feet, swaying from side to side for a moment, before he stands upright and grunts out in annoyance, "Alright, so I don't exactly have the element of surprise up my sleeve — big whoop!"

"Oh, it's quite the 'big whoop'," The blue cladded turtle shoots back.

The human girl interjects in a coarse whisper as she grabs the vigilante's elbow, "I didn't bring you here just to try and goad him into beating you into a pulp. I wanted you to actually learn something!"

"Hey, Leo, have you seen the turtle wax anywhere," Michelangelo wonders aloud as he hops into the dojo, his arms folded behind his shell with an easy smile gracing his lips.

The blue cladded turtle frowns at the question, answering plainly, "Uh, no, Mike. I've already prepared myself for an utterly ridiculous answer, so may I ask why you're looking for turtle wax?"

The orange cladded turtle snorts, giving a dramatic roll of his baby blue hues, "Isn't it obvious, bro? How else do you think my shell gets this illustrious sheen?"

"Mikey," The katana-wielding turtle utters, dumbfounded, despite his previous deceleration of being prepared for any range of laughably absurd answers, "Have you been cleaning your shell using a cleaning product intended for a car?"

His orange cladded brother shifts from foot to foot consciously. "....no. No, no! Of course not, dude! I mean why would I, a turtle, use, uh, car wax on my shell? That's crazy — _crazy_!"

"I feel like you're saying that, but you honestly had no idea that turtle wax is in fact meant for cars."

"I-It's cool, dude."

"No. No, it's not cool," Leonardo huffs out in agitation, as he pinches the bridge of his snout. He parts his lips to add to his previous claim when suddenly his breath halts in his chest and his tongue feels like lead in his mouth.

Sniggering, Casey adds, "Only you, dude! Only you!"

April gives a lengthy roll of her eyes, then her pale blue gaze flickers over to the katana-wielding turtle and she frowns deeply. "Leo?"

Leonardo's face was washed blank, like his brain cogs couldn't turn fast enough to take in the information from his wide eyes. Every muscle of his body just froze. Then without another word, he departs from the dojo, ignoring the chorus of voices objecting behind him.

Underneath his breath, the blue cladded turtle was silently pleading,"No, no, no! Not here, not now! Please!"

Leonardo's hand slaps over his mouth and with his sinewy fingers trembling violently against his lips, he muffles an anguished moan. As if in a trance, his fingers still cupping his lips, the mutant turtle stumbles in an unsteady gait across the threshold of the spacious sitting area, towards the gaping door that leads into his room. He can hear muffled voices calling his name, the seemingly thunderous falls of their footsteps that send vibrations shooting up his limbs, but his movements are sluggish, halted as if he were moving underwater. In his mind, he hears the deafening alien screeching as the ship gushes with the frigid, swirling torrents of the ocean, feels the salty water splash against his face. He stumbles and leans against the wall, his hand going to his throat as he coughs. Even then, as his lungs filled and emptied in time, he could feel that cold, stillness clamping onto his chest, freezing his vital organs. Some distant part of Leonardo knows that the reality in which he lived at that second in time shouldn't be possible; he had died. Every fiber of his being knows that it is simply out of the question for him to have drowned and still be walking around, but he had.

Leonardo was no corpse, that was for sure. He could feel the warmth of his pumping blood on his skin, and he could hear his heartbeat. But his head is pounding, every cell in his body is screaming for oxygen that never comes despite his frantic, gulping breaths. The blue cladded turtle's mouth is open in a mute gasp for air, his palm moving to nestle on the crease in his throat as he tries to force himself to just take in a single greedy swallow of air. A hand grabs his shoulder, meaty fingers digging into the flesh, and he tears away from the touch as if burned, gasping throatily. In only moments the voices were coming from every direction, getting closer, louder, more frantic. The katana-wielding turtle begins to fall. Breathing raggedly he barely makes it to his doorway, before his eyes roll into the back of his head and he crumples to his knees. He plummets further and further towards the ground until the darkness swallows him whole and he limply collapses, the full weight of his body smacking against the concrete beneath. 

———

Leonardo's leaf-green finger has the string of the teabag intertwined around it as he slowly steeps it into the steaming ceramic cup. He can feel the heat seeping into his palms, and he goes stock still, trying to listen to the frantic whispering going on in the dojo. After finding the blue cladded turtle out cold outside of his room, his purple cladded brother had tried to force him into a medical examination, which he had politely declined. Well, maybe not politely, now that he was looking back at it. A shameful blush crept up his cheeks as he recalls the none too gentle way he'd verbally declined his concerned brother in a way that would have put his hot-headed brother to shame. He frowns as a not so quiet yell, no doubt from the red cladded turtle in question, makes him jolt and nearly spill his tea over his front.

"No, it ain't fuckin' normal, Don!"

"Chillax, dude! He'll hear us!"

"I never said it was! Of course, it isn't! It's far from it in fact, I'm just saying that I'm not surprised. I mean, think of what he went through, Raph." A pause. "You don't come out of something like that unscathed. There were bound to be some repercussions, and now we're facing them."

"Yeah, face it, dude! Your bro is a stinkin' wackbag!"

In return there was an audible 'thud' of flesh meeting with flesh as an angry hiss sounds across the room,"Don't say shit like that, Jones! I mean it! You don't know what happened - You didn't have to watch him..."

"Raph," A soft, feminine voices, worried.

Needless to say, Leonardo's brothers and their human friends were none too pleased and had been arguing amongst each other on just what to do about it. He squints his eyes, his blush slowly fading from view as he takes a noisy sip from his tea. The mutant turtle didn't know of any orthodox way to approach his unique situation. If unique could even begin to explain it that is. The blue cladded turtle would like to think that he has a grip on himself, that he's not going off the deep end, but the rapidly growing pile of evidence says quite the opposite. The turtle, in blunt and straight to the point honesty, was likely a raving lunatic because, despite the great assortment of oddities that he and his family had encountered on their adventures, there was so far only one thing had remained constant and that was the looming threat of death. No ninja, mutant or otherwise, no matter their skill or strength, could conquer that.

"Raph, Mikey, Don! Help, " Leonardo screamed unintelligibly through the roaring torrents of water that tossed him back and forth in the depths like a ragdoll. Blood continued to pulsate from his gaping wound in his shoulder, spreading red over his vision as he continues screaming, "Help! Help...!" 

Leonardo hadn't even realized how unnaturally still he'd gone in those few seconds as that brief flash of his memories attacked him. The turtle closes his eyes, taking in a brief shaky exhale, before taking another sip from his tea, but he had to suppress a groan when he hears multiple approaching footsteps and hurried whispering. His face scrunched up and wordlessly he sets down his cup of tea on the counter, and in true ninja fashion, made a miraculous escape. The blue cladded turtle quietly hopped up onto the counter and flipped up towards one of the many ceiling beams that extended across the lair, catching it with his hands and hoisting himself up without so much as a grunt of exertion. He shimmied his way across the beam until he reached the turnstiles that served as both an exit and an entrance into the lair, before dropping down on all fours and silently creeping down the dark tunnel.

"C'mon, Don," Raphael urges shoving forward Donatello, a smirk playing across his lips," You're the one sooo determined that he be examined."

Donatello gulps nervously, hugging his medical bag close to his chest protectively as he inquires of his two brothers,"You guys won't try and leave me to him, will you? I am the closest thing this family has to a trained medical professional, so I can't be left alone to deal with him. I take too much priority," Sticking one finger into the air in proclamation, he goes on to add,"I am not qualified to deal with expertly trained ninja patients."

"News flash - You're an expertly trained ninja, too," The red cladded turtle hisses in return, slapping the flat of his palm against his face.

The purple cladded turtle flushed as he quietly countered,"It's no secret that each one of us has our own unique forte, Raph. And while I may be trained in ninjitsu, I certainly do not excel in it as the rest of you do," Shifting in place uncomfortably,"Namely Leo. That's not to say he is the strongest fighter in our midst, but he has skill and grace that only comes from a highly dedicated training routine. The point is that I would not want to have a dust-up with him beyond the practice mat."

"You don't got to write a whole ass essay on it, Don. Just say that the dude would pummel you into the ground," The vigilante proclaims with a snort.

The purple cladded turtle retorts,"Oh, like you can talk! I'm surprised you're not still mopping yourself up from the floor!"

The orange cladded turtle he utters softly, "Uh, guys -"

"Geez, Don. What did Leo say to you," April inquires curiously.

Trying poorly to dial down his own evident amusement as he crosses his bulging, muscular arms over his yellow platted chest, Raphael asks,"Yeah, just what did our esteemed leader have to say to you?"

"Things that wouldn't go uncensored on cable television, that's what. Not only that, but he grabbed me by the mask," Donatello exclaims," By the mask!"

Michelangelo cuts in, "Guys, seriously! Look!"

The red cladded turtle's eyes flash over to the kitchen and an irritated growl escapes from his lips, "Great! That's just great. He's already ninja-ed his way out of here," His eyes snap over to the youngest turtle of the three and he glares," You couldn't stop runnin' your motor mouth, could you?"

The orange cladded turtle sputters in objection, his eyes bulging from their sockets," You've gotta be yanking my tail! For once I was being the quiet one, dude!"

Huffing, before letting out a quiet sigh of relief, the purple cladded turtle states firmly, "I don't like this at all. You know I'm used to this sort of childish behavior from you two, but from Leo... He's not himself," He runs his hand over his face, going on with a lengthy shake of his head, "Whatever, we'll just wait for him to come back. He can't sneak around forever, unless he's planning on making a daylight appearance."

\----

Leonardo sits in a slouched position on the rooftop, his legs dangling off of the edge with both of his katanas laid out across his lap, a rag in hand as he shines them out of boredom rather than necessity. He holds one up in his line of sight, only a few inches away from his face as he peers at his reflection. In a brief flash, he sees his blue hues gazed over with a grey membrane, dead and lifeless in their sockets, and he flinches, nearly dropping the sword into the alleyway below.

He shakes his head in denial, clenching his eyes shut as he mutters reassuringly to himself," Not real. Not real. Not real."

Readjusting the sword in his grip, Leonardo hurriedly rubs the rag over the blade, intentionally averting his eyes away from the reflective metal. Suddenly there is a burst of buzzing against his hip that makes him jump with a start again as his phone angrily vibrates for what must be the fourth time in the past two minutes. And as the blue cladded turtle did the other three times he immediately shuts it off with a barely audible 'click'. Then after a moment, he guiltily swipes the phone from his utility belt and holds it in his line of sight, his blue hues skimming over the messages.

As was common with his younger brother, Donatello, his text messages progressed from well reasoned and methodical paragraphs with perfect grammar and punctuation to being nonsensical blurbs written in all-caps without any breaks. Leonardo snorts, shutting off the device and he moves to shove his phone back into his belt. Then, almost as if sensing he was being rudely ignored, the purple cladded turtle resorted to calling him, and the familiar chiming of his assigned ringtone resounds across the rooftop. The blue cladded turtle visibly slumps and the contact photo of Doctor Mindstrong of Space Heroes and the name Don-Boi flashes across his bright screen, making him wince. Scrunching his lips to the side of his face, the mutant turtle clicks the luminous green 'answer' icon and holds the phone to his ear.

"Leo," The voice of Donatello blasts from the other end, making him flinch violently and crane his neck away from his phone, "Oh, this is brilliant! Just brilliant! We find you conked out on the floor in a puddle of your drool, and what's the first thing you can think to do when you come to? Allow me to check you over, a sensible individual would think.Make sure your brain isn't cooking like an egg in your skull, maybe? But no. You see, that would be too easy for the likes of you. No, instead you choose to run topside with your tail tucked between your legs when any number of things could be wrong with you!"

Leonardo replies in a flat tone, "I'm fine. I just got dizzy. I'll be home in a few minutes, so you can stop blowing up my phone, okay?"

"Dizzy!? Dizzy," A new voice cuts in as a short scuffle sounds off in the background.

Leonardo nearly drops his phone into the alleyway below as his entire face scrunches up at the indignant screech his red cladded brother chooses to butt in with. "Yeah, dizzy! My blood sugar was probably just low or something, okay?"

Raphael barks back in response, "Is that all you've got? Some lame-ass excuse about low blood sugar? Oh, when your stubborn shell gets home -"

With a tired huff, he hangs up without another word and slides the phone into his belt, keeping his hand there. His fingers started fumbling against the opposite hip, popping open the small holster typically reserved for smoke pellets, and he pulls out a crumpled carton of cigarettes, the one stick shaking against the cardboard walls. He slides it out, keeping it pressed between his two fingers before he whips out a lighter from the same pouch and flicks it to life, cupping his palm around the cigarette as he brings the rippling flame close. As the end burns red, he curls his lips around the cigarette, inhaling deeply. The katana-wielding turtle inhaled that grey stench, and there was something cold and distant in his blue colored eyes as he took each drag, as his mind wandered to what it most often did — quickly fading dreams and thoughts of aliens and his nagging brothers.

_"You're drowning."_

Leonardo groans, gulping heavily, trying to push past the lump in his throat,"...Pull it together... You can't fall apart. You can't. Not here, not now."


	2. What Will the Signal Be

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Hey guys! This has been one of my favorite chapters to write so far because of all the character interactions I get to do. Which is why it’s a little longer than usual. Please comment and tell me what you think.

Leonardo was by no means a chain smoker, and he rarely indulged himself with more than a single pathetic cigarette every few weeks. He had found the crumpled, water sodden and half-empty packet laying teasingly on the railing of a porch on one of his many excursions to the surface. He had impulsively snatched it the second his three younger brothers had raced ahead to talk amongst themselves. The blue cladded thoughtfully flicks some ashes into the air, his tired gaze following them as they flutter into the alleyway below. The dusty grey flakes danced in the street light below, a choreographed ballet conducted by the gentle wind. As he watched, his eyes grew a tiny bit wider; the wind quickened for a brief second. The blue cladded turtle frowns deeply, visibly stiffening as one hand twitches towards the sheaths of his katanas.

Facing forward, the mutant turtle utters cooly and flicks the cigarette from his free fingers onto the ground, "It's been a while, Karai. What, couldn't find any old ladies' purses to nab?"

Leonardo pivots around on one foot, simultaneously yanking his blade from its sheath and locking it with the tanto that was cutting in a perfect arc in the air towards his exposed shell. Karai's painted red lips twist into a sneer as she hisses in response, "Always got to have something clever to say, don't you, freak?"

The blue cladded turtle slightly bends his knee and pushes forward with the flat of his blade, which sends the kunoichi stumbling several inches backward. "Heh, well, we've got to have a little bit dialogue between our little clashes, otherwise it would get boring pretty quick," He points out with a perk of his lips and a one-shouldered shrug, his eyes glittering in the pale moonlight above, "You're much more dangerous when you don't have something to keep you occupied."

Karai lets out a breathy spurt of laughter, before cutting it off abruptly as she begins to circle him with her tanto blade positioned close to her chest. The way her muscles were curled taut and her earthy brown hues were narrowed into dangerously focused slits, reminded the mutant turtle of a snake coiling into itself before it would strike.

"There is no talking your way out. Not this time, Leonardo. You," The kunoichi halted her pacing to stand in front of him, twirling her blade from one hand to the other and took a step forward. He took a cautious step back, his lips pulling into a thin line as his blue hues meet her's, "Forfeited your life when you worked up the guts to cross me. Any other occasion and I might have been impressed. Unfortunately for you, it was my father's life in the line this time around. Not some faceless nobody in the clan."

"I'm just kicking myself because we missed," Leonardo snarls in turn, showing a glint of his canines as his lips upturned into a spiteful smile.

"That's the last pass you get. Don't speak another word against my father — your future master," Karai abruptly interjects, her tone one of warning.

The blue cladded turtle felt a painful twist in his chest and his breath escapes his lips in a strangled gasp as he chokes out, "What did you just say? Tell me you're not that stupid to believe that I would ever join you —"

"You will," The kunoichi says as if it is an undeniable fact and not a foolish opinion. She rubs two of her gloved fingers together, picking at a loose string in the material, "I've made it clear since our first encounter that I want you by my side. You don't want the same things as your brothers—you're different. You've seen it, you've felt it, too, I know, Leonardo. Join me, join the Foot Clan and we can put that mess behind us. Your life can be spared," She offers a hand forward, moving to grasp the side of his face when he takes a step back, disgust clear in his gaze, "Here, let me make things simple. So simple that even you'll understand. I'm going to make a few little guesses based around that whole nasty situation with my father and at any point, if I'm wrong you just cut me off. One, you didn't want to fire at him. You didn't want to betray my trust, to turn your back to me when I so graciously stuck my neck out for you..."

Leonardo does not part his lips to speak and his blue hues are oddly still and wooden in their sockets. His mouth is pulled into a taut line, his thick, green fingers curled into pale, bloodless fists at his sides. Karai's painted red lips tug into a small, self-satisfied smirk and she nods knowingly.

"Two, it was your precious brothers who proposed the idea. Who pressured you into going through with it, despite how foolish and fruitless you know it would prove to be," Karai continues, her tone questioning. She then chuckles low in her throat, shaking her head from side to side in a slow, disbelieving manner when the latter stays silent, "You know I really did think you were different, but you and my dear old dad are a lot more alike than the two of you would like to think. You're just as single-minded and obsessed as he is... You just keep your mania focused on that makeshift family of yours."

The blue cladded turtle responds defensively, "It's looking like you've thrown the whole 'no talking' thing out the window, so I'll just say this," A muscle in his jaw twitches as he bites out, "I am far from the perfect leader my brothers and so many others mockingly call me, but I know that I am the farthest thing from your father possible. I know where my loyalties lie...where my heart and soul lie. And that is with my family, with my clan! You'll never get me to turn against them, Karai. I won't join you."

Karai cranes her neck towards the other rooftop adjacent to where they stand, where a small group of ninjas clad in traditional Foot Clan garb are standing at the ready with their weapons drawn. Growling more in annoyance than anger, Leonardo snarls with his bared teeth peaking from his lips, "And now that I've denied your kind offer you're going to try and kill me - emphasis on the try part. Big surprise there."

Karai cocks her head at him and utters coyly, "Kill you? I have no plans to kill you. For now," She tossed her head to the side, facing him as the short wisps of raven hair framing her face whip around in the wind and she goes on, "I've said what I needed to say, Leonardo. I want you by my side. So for the day my friends over there will just send you limping back to your pathetic family. We'll be seeing each other again soon enough."

With her words said, Karai was gone with nothing more than a cool rush of wind to signal her departure. Each side stood tense, waiting for the first move. One ninja towards the front pulled out his katana with a metallic hiss, presenting an open challenge as he offers one hand forward beckoning him. Leonardo quickly swipes a smoke bomb from his belt, throwing it into their midst, sending thick smoke over the rooftop and up around them. Most of them coughed loudly and stumbled back blindly, while a few of them drew their weapons. Instead of waiting for the smoke to recede to start his onslaught, the blue cladded turtle silently moved through it and back into the shadows, letting them slash madly at the swirling shapes with cries varying from panic and falsely assumed victory.

The smoke was eventually cleared entirely by the wind, but there was no obvious sign of the mutant turtle. Only half a dozen of the ninjas were left standing as the smoked cleared revealing the rest of their comrades out cold on the ground that might as well have cartoon canaries fluttering around their heads. One of the few standing ninjas makes his way across the rooftop, katana drawn at his side with his breath held as he waited in anticipation. Placing one foot on the edge of the roof as he lifts his blade high above his head, he peers at the ground below, eyes scanning the area around. A three-fingered hand shot up from the underside of the roof and with a startled cry the ninja is thrown off the edge and lands with a resounding thud on the fire escape several feet below.

Leonardo pounces upward with his twin blades pointed downward as he soars through the air, landing in a crouched position in the middle of the swarming ninjas. With a katana on either side of himself, he meets two clashing blades, gritting his teeth as they both push forward before he sends the ninjas on either side of him stumbling back. Then he lunges into the air again, snapping his legs apart into a split kick in midair, simultaneously knocking them out cold and sending them flailing onto their backs. Three choose that moment to gang up on him and while two seize his arms and wrench them apart, the third ravels his gloved hands around the turtle's throat forcing him backward.

Leonardo slams his head forward, cracking it against the human skull and ignoring the throbbing pain, he thrashes out his arms and swipes madly with both his katana. The two ninjas back up, sloppily evading the uncalculated swipes with the blades meant only to drive them back. It was in that moment he drove his balled fist forward slamming it into the ninja on his right stomach, before balling his free hand into the sleek black cloth of his uniform and throwing him like a sack of potatoes at the ninja on his left. The two topple like bowling pins, leaving only one ninja standing several feet away with a katana and tanto blade drawn in an open challenge.

The blue classes turtle rolls his shoulder blades in their sockets, and with barely a scoff he drives forward and meets the charging final ninja with ease. He brought one katana blade up, easily defecting the opposing blade. He pushed the sword away but the user was already bringing his arm back, slicing towards the turtle's unguarded face. Their blades interlock in a resounding clash of metal on metal, before the mutant turtle, twists both of his blades simultaneously and forces the latter's blade upwards, before relinquishing it from his hands as it clatter across the rooftop.

Growling in frustration, the lone ninja charged with his tanto blade. As fast as he dodged, Leonardo didn't even feel the wind from the blade pass over his ducking neck. He slides to his knees, before quickly turning around again and went to all fours as he used his arms to brace himself as he mule-kicked the ninja. Sheathing one sword, the blue cladded turtle spins the blade in his grip before pointing the tip towards the latter's chest, silently requesting a surrender. The ninja's hands go up, but the grip on his tanto blade doesn't loosen in the slightest. And in a predictable move, he sloppily lunges forward and slashes the blade rapidly in the general direction of the ninja turtle's throat.

Everything at that point seems to slow down, going in tune with Leonardo's heartbeat as his eyes slowly widen and his lips part to release a strangled breath of air. He could easily lift his own drawn sword, send the tanto blade flying from the latter's grip. If the blade was too close to forcing his blade forward, then he could simply perform a snap kick and send the assailant flying back from him. In those precious moments, he could have done any number of things to evade the slicing blade, but he didn't because a sick, morbid curiosity overtook him. All he can think of in those agonizingly slow heartbeats was floating alone in the swirling torrents of dark, salty water, and the gargantuan alien's departing screams as his heart stuttered to an abrupt halt. Of dying.

" _Kraang knows this...you, turtle will never earn the sweet release of death. No, you'll never...ever..."_

Leonardo closes his eyes, his eyelashes fluttering as an agonizing pain like a thousand red-hot nails tear into his throat, ripping it open as blood arced into the air, a red ribbon in the pale moonlight. The cry that emitted from him was barely more than a wheeze as both of his hands claw at his mangled throat, trying futility to slow the blood that flowed like a lazy river. But, oh, there was so much blood - dark crimson, with a discreet, metallic scent. It cascaded across the turtle's paling skin, right through his fumbling fingertips. A bitter cold gnawed its way into his insides like a hungry rat making its way into his bones as he fell to his knees and began to slouch over onto his side. His surroundings blurred into a new sick reality as darkness pushed its way into his vision. With one final wretched gasping attempt to inhale through the gouts of claret, he goes completely limp and succumbs to the heavyweight of the shroud of darkness pressing in from all sides.

———

" _State your number and designation," A voice crackles in the darkness._

_"Number: MT-1987," Another voice replies, devoid of any emotion, "Designation: Guardian."_

_A beat of silence. "What is your purpose on the planet known as...Earth?"_

_"Mission statement: Protect the secret and defend the masters."_

The silver moon was high in the sky giving off the only light, apart from the lampposts whose rays died inches from the dirty tungsten bulbs. On the rooftop, a mutant turtle lay in a breathless sleep with his eyes fixed and vacant, staring at nothing, a trail of dried blood dribbling over his lips and down his face. And though no wound is seen underneath, the once spreading stain of red on his throat had become stiff and hard against his skin. His heart is as still as stone beneath his yellow platted chest and his lungs are long bereft of air, his skin cold and pale. Then like lightning striking, his heart gives a single solitary beat, then another, then another until there's a long, steady rhythm going. Then his chest lifts upwards and intakes a breathe like it was made into an art form, his chest rising and falling with the sedative qualities of a lullaby.

Leonardo could feel his heartbeat, every single pound in his chest. Not through his ears, but that pounding, that great pressure, he felt from within. He slowly sits up, his head hanging low as his fingers twitch across his skin, trailing up the dried layers of blood clinging stubbornly to his skin. He gulps thickly, his bleary unfocused gaze darting around the rooftop as memories come rushing back to his conscious mind. His free hand abruptly slaps over his gaping mouth, frantically cupping it as a cry escapes his trembling lips. Every part of him wants to scream himself hoarse, to cry until his tears run dry, but he instead finds himself numb with this startling realization. With all the steadiness of a toddler taking its first steps towards their parents' waiting arms, he stands and takes one step forward. Every second that passes from that moment to the next is a blur, for he blinks and he's no longer on the rooftop, standing in a pool of his blood, but standing at the entrance of the lair, leaning heavily against the turnstiles. He absently notes that his feet are wet, hears the long since past splashes that had echoed through the space of the tunnel.

Raphael is stomping towards him, growling in agitation,"- a few minutes, my shell! We've been blowin' up your damn shell cell for hours now! I oughta wring your neck for this new 'tude of yours!"

Michelangelo is quipping," Yeah, dude, you've got the lose the attitude. The last thing we need is another Raph," He smiles as he puffs up, pointing to himself," Now another me on the other hand -"

"As you can see there's clearly no getting out of this one, so you might as well just suck on your thumb and follow me to my lab," Donatello states firmly when his face suddenly closes up and he shoves a hand in between his other two bickering siblings," Guys, stop! Quit it, now! Leo? Leonardo...?"

Leonardo lifts his head at the sound of his name, revealing the dried blood coating his throat that splashed down to his upper chest with a few stray flecks covering his entire form. "Don... I didn't..." The blue cladded turtle whispers hoarsely, stumbling forward as the latter quickly moves to catch him, "I'm sorry...I'm sorry... _please_... Just please..."

"Get Sensei! Get him, now," The purple cladded turtle screams, hands going over the evident source of the blood, only to frown when he can't find a wound," Leo - Leonardo! I need you to tell me where you were hit! Leo? Raphael damn it! Get over here and help me!"

"What do I do," The red cladded turtle inquires his voice thick, going to his knees beside his two brothers," Don?"

The purple cladded turtle snaps," I'm thinking! I can't find any wound, but this much blood...whoever did this...they're dead, Raph."

"So it's not Leo's," Raphael breathes in relief, eyes slackening.

"It can't be," Donatello confirms propping Leonardo's limp head in his lap," All I can think is that he had a less than friendly encounter topside, and now he's in some form of shock."

"Leo? Hey, c'mon, Fearless! Look at me! C'mon," The red cladded turtle hisses, repeatedly slapping the flat of his palm on the side of the limp turtle's face, but he gets no physical response,"...Leo? Oh, shit, Don. Shit, shit, shit... what the shell is wrong with him? Don — Don! Answer me!"

Master Splinter is suddenly bounding into the room, a fretful Michelangelo hot on his heels, and both skid to a halt beside the three turtles on the floor. The mutant rat gently pushes aside the purple cladded turtle, pulling the blue cladded turtle close to him as he closes his eyes and breathes in deeply. The red and purple cladded turtle stay on their knees beside him, watching with enraptured fascination as he lowly chants a mantra beneath his breath. A dull glow spreads across the mutant rat's hands and he stretches them out, settling them over the blue cladded turtle's yellow platted chest, making his eerily still form gleam in the faint lighting.

Master Splinter orders, "Michelangelo go boil some water. Donatello bring me some rags and retrieve my healing mantra scrolls from my personal library. You should recognize the emblem. Go, hurry now," Then he snaps his attention to his remaining son, going on to hastily add, "Assist me in moving your brother to his room."

**One Week Later**

It was strange, Leonardo thought as he stared at Master Splinter sitting cross-legged across from him on his bed. He closes his eyes briefly, gulping and though he knows tensing against the shaking of his limbs is useless, he does it instinctively. He attempts to drink in the silence, rather than wonder over the strange, awkwardness of it, to counteract the fear that threatens to engulf him. He exhales, blinking open his eyes to find the latter's eyes fixed on him, and even though he knows that the gaze isn't intentionally cold (it was hard to convey a lot of emotion when one had a rat's eyes) he couldn't suppress the shiver that went down his spine.

The mutant turtle and the mutant rat each had a ceramic mug of gyokuro tea encased in their cupped hands, and a wooden tray bearing the tea set was precariously balanced on the bed in between both of their forms. The tea set was made of an aging clay that had an ocean blue glossy interior with a speckled coffee bean brown exterior. The blue cladded turtle knows all too well that the thick silence that hung in the air would not dissipate until he spoke, for that was his Sensei's way. He often did not pry, not unless necessary, instead choosing to allow his sons to reveal their hidden truths in their own time.

"Sensei," Leonardo utters lowly, lowering his mug of tea with trembling hands. His eyes are averted away from the mutant rat and his mouth is pulled into a thoughtful line, "After... When I came back to the lair and you, all of you, had to see me like that...I...I... I'm sorry, Sensei. I don't really even know where to begin."

"You gave us quite the scare, my son," Master Splinter strokes the fibers of his beard in between two fingers, stating sagely to his pupil, "All stories start with a single word, so begin there."

Leonardo's royal blue eyes were glassy and fogged over with death. A single rivulet of blood ran down his cheek, still warm to touch, but quickly turning cold.

The blue cladded turtle flinches as if he had been struck, his eyes are blown wide as his hand hovers above his neck. "I-I'm sorry...I'm sorry, Sensei..."

The mutant rat waves his hand, his brows snapping together as he utters," Calm yourself, my son. I can see this approach is only further distressing you," The end of his tail flicks, lazily swinging behind him, "We shall go a different direction. I would like to address your...worrying behavior prior to this incident."

Oh. Leonardo gulps thickly, responding to the latter, "I'm not sure what you mean, Sensei."

"I believe you know precisely to what I am referring to. You have a new hardness to you, my son. You have begun to distance yourself from your family..."

" _With the world at stake, the only thing of importance is that you complete your mission. No matter what you have to sacrifice...or who."_

Leonardo cuts in as the latter trails off, wringing his hands together as he stumbles out with, "Do you remember what you told me just before the assault on TCRI?"

Master Splinter's expression is clouded with a sudden sadness as he admits solemnly," I do. I regret my words, my son, more than you'll ever know," His brown eyes bored into his son as he went on to say, "There is a part of myself I try to ignore when I allow you and your brothers to leave this lair, the part of me that is a parent, because if I only ever thought of you and your brothers as a father would...I would never be able to let you leave my sight."

"Sensei..." Leonardo murmurs in a soft voice, creasing his brows," You know that I don't blame you for what happened. It was right and it was necessary. I'm the leader of this team, and their older brother...their lives will always come before mine. I know this," He exhales shakily, keeping his lips parted," But ever since I went down with that damn Kraang ship...I feel like a part of me never came back from that water. Even now, I can taste the bitter salt in my mouth, feel the water filling up my lungs as my heart hammers madly in my chest. It's all that I see, all that I dream of ...a-and...and..."

"Leonardo, do you believe that these nightmares are beginning to affect your reality? The way you perceive your world," The mutant rat interjects.

The mutant turtle stiffly lifts his head up and down, choking out with a watery voice, "I-I don't want this. I don't want t-to feel this way, Sensei," He clenched his eyes closed as the familiar sting of tears enters his vision, his jaw tightening, "Sensei, I don't...I-I can't...get t-these images out of my head... A-and I'm trying, I am..."

"What occurred last night on the surface, were you or anyone else of import hurt," Master Splinter inquires of the latter, his hands clasping the handles of the tea tray as he begins to stand.

"No, Sensei," Leonardo answers truthfully, sniffing as he hurriedly wipes the underside of his eyes.

Master Splinter releases a long, weary sigh, the tea set clinking gently on the tray as he edges towards the door. He had held up a finger then, his eyes darkening from the seriousness in his gaze. "I'll let this go, Leonardo," He declares quietly, "But only for now. And if I get the slightest hint that your focus is being disrupted again, you are sharing, is that absolutely clear?"

Leonardo had swallowed at that, the part of him that would always be Master Splinter's tiny, helpless son quailing.

"Is that clear," Master Splinter repeats, raising his brows, and Leonardo nodded frantically.

"Hai, Sensei," Leonardo confirms verbally with a slight bow as he watches him depart with a swish of his dark robes.

"And one more thing - You will be taking a break from any sort of excursion to the surface until I say otherwise," The mutant rat adds, eyes narrowing and searching for any physical indication his son was going to challenge this order.

"Hai, Sensei," The blue cladded turtle repeats pitifully.

Leonardo goes to his feet, walking the small length of his room until he stops in front of the mirror hanging on the far side of his wall. The blue cladded turtle gently slides his fingers against the crease of his neck and feels the light thrum of blood pumping steadily through his veins. He observes in the mirror the steady rise and fall of his chest, watches with enrapt fascination as his warm breath fogs the glass. The blue cladded turtle reaches a finger forward swiping two diagonal lines on the misty surface that aligned with his eyes, before creating a long frown that lined up with his straight lips swipes his hand across the cool surface, wiping away the moisture clouding his reflection. He tears his transfixed gaze away, turns on his heel, and goes toward his door, hand tensing on the handle before he slowly turns it.

Immediately Raphael goes stock still in front of the punching bag Casey is holding, his fist frozen in midair. "Leo," He states aloud, tense," Sensei told us you were up and talking."

"I even managed to tie my own shoes," Leonardo quips, a hint of a smile on his lips.

Donatello asserts quickly, "You're looking better," He begins a brisk walk towards him and stops a few inches from his older brother, "But another checkup wouldn't do you any harm."

The blue cladded turtle agrees with a slight tilt of his head, crossing his arms, "Yeah, okay. If it'll keep you off my shell, Don."

"Oh," The purple cladded turtle utters, blinking in surprise, "I was expecting a bit more of a fight, but alright. If you'll just follow me."

Leonardo wordlessly followed Donatello towards the direction of his laboratory. Immediately the purple cladded turtle guides him to the large metal table situated off to the side of the room, patting it to imply he needs to jump on it, and with a roll of his eyes, the blue cladded turtle obeys. The purple cladded turtle turns his back to him, sorting through the toolbox that acted as his first aid kit, unexpectedly yanking out a bone saw, before laughing nervously and shoving it back into the box. Then he pulls out a simple glass thermometer, holding it gingerly by the end.

"Alright, bend over and cough for me," Donatello orders him, his face stony.

Leonardo blushes a bright shade of magenta, stuttering out in objection," What? No - No, absolutely not -"

"Joking! I was joking. You're a turtle, not a puppy. The mouth will work, "The purple cladded turtle chuckles, patting his hand on the side of his brother's face and as the latter obediently opens his mouth, he cautiously guides the thermometer in," It should take around three minutes. Hold still and keep that under your tongue - No talking! And stay still!"

The blue cladded turtle stiffens, his lips puckering around the delicate piece of equipment settled snug under his tongue. The purple cladded turtle either doesn't notice his older brother's tenseness or he's simply choosing to ignore it. The older mutant turtle eyes scrutinize his younger brother as he hums to himself whilst securing the torn and frayed cuff of a blood pressure meter to his lower left bicep. His younger brother's practiced fingers glided over his skin, settling over the slot in his wrist to take his pulse.

"Hmm. Let me see the thermometer," Donatello commands, pulling his fingers away from his brother's wrist and snatching the thermometer, "85.66 Fahrenheit. A little above normal for a red-eared slider, but nothing to get worked up over. Your blood pressure is another matter entirely, and you're going to have to make some changes."

"'Changes'? What kind of changes," Leonardo demands with a frown, his brows raised.

The purple cladded turtle wags a finger, grabbing a clipboard from beside the latter. "Don't test me on this, Leo," He clicks a pen and begins to scribble onto the clipboard," High blood pressure is bad enough for your average Joe human in their late 50's, but you're a 15-year-old mutant turtle. And another thing -"

The blue cladded turtle tunes out the latter's nonsensical rant, his eyes diverting to a large bin at his side, which has a knob of an oxygen tank protruding from the top. "Don," He starts lowly, before inquiring," What's this in this bin here?"

"Huh," Donatello grunts out, then he directs his gaze towards where his brother is looking," Oh, oh that! That's just some diving equipment I found a couple of dumpster runs ago. I've modified it to fit my specifications, to you know, accommodate a shell, and I've managed to patch it up quite nicely. Sometime in the next few weeks, I'm wanting to take it for a test run."

Leonardo abruptly blurts out," Can I?"

"Hmm, what? You want to take it for a spin," The purple cladded turtle questions.

The blue cladded turtle gives a nod, telling him," Yeah! I mean, if you think it's safe enough for you to take it for a spin -"

"I don't see a problem with it," Donatello interjects," I mean, I don't see why you'd be interested in it, but if you really, really want to. We can take it sometime next week."

Leonardo bumps his brother's shoulder with his knuckle, replying to him, "Sounds good to me! Now, if you're done chewing me out on my health..." The latter's expression tenses and he opens his mouth to say something, before quickly snapping it shut, "Is there something you want to add?"

"Leo," The purple cladded turtle utters weakly, one hand settling on his forehead, "Last night - Shell, I don't even know where to start -"

"Then don't," The blue cladded turtle cuts in, "Forget that it happened. I'm fine, Don. I'm fine."

"But you weren't, Leo," Donatello objects, distressed, "Not last night. I thought...I thought you'd gone catatonic - !"

Suddenly Leonardo choked. Blood sprayed from his lips and a single tear ran down his cheek. Then slowly, ever so slowly his eyes fluttered closed behind the slits in his mask. Then his lips parted, his last gasping breath of air escaping. His chest stopped moving and his heart ceased beating. Leonardo was dead.

Leonardo settles his hand on his brother's shoulder, his eyes boring into him. "Don, I..." He paused, then shook his head, "I can't. I just can't."

The purple cladded turtle whispers," Leo, you're shaking..."

The blue cladded turtle raises one hand in front of himself, shocked to see the limb tremble uncontrollably, his fingers twitching as if grasping at the empty air. "Can't you just let it go for now," He asks, then he closes his eyes briefly, and there's a visible tick in his jaw. He clenched the same hand into a fist and lets it hang at his side, before continuing," I'll tell you when I'm ready, but for now...I'm asking you, I'm begging you...Let it go, and tell others to do the same."

Donatello bobs his head up and down stiffly, responding to his brother," Okay. Okay, I'll stop asking, for now, Leo."

Relieved, the blue cladded turtle states a simple," Thanks, Don."

———

"Is it me or is Leo still actin' like really off," Casey comments giving a furtive glance towards the turtle walking furthest behind, "I get a really weird vibe around him now, and it's startin' to creep me out, yo."

Donatello nodded thoughtfully, remarking, "For once I agree with puck-head," He quickens his gait, going to stand between his two other brothers, "He's been oddly distant and when we try to close that distance, he gets jumpy."

"Real jumpy, dude! It's like he's scared of us, " Michelangelo adds with a sad frown, "This morning I just tapped him in the shoulder and he practically pounced three feet in the air." 

Raphael quickly shoots a look towards the turtle that was the topic of the conversation, and he notices him intentionally walking at a much slower pace, his eyes flickering warily around the area they're walking. "Maybe Sensei shouldn't have let him out tonight," He comments cooly, crossing his arms over his chest, "I mean, he's not even doing his usual schtick. No rehearsed plans, no cheesy one-liners before we attack - Nothing!"

"If I didn't know better, I'd say you missed our Fearless Leader," The purple cladded turtle comments teasingly, nudging his brother with his elbow.

The red cladded turtle scoffs, "As if," Despite his adamant denial, his expression betrays him, "Okay, maybe I do. So what? There's nothin' we can do about it. The dude is a closed book."

Leonardo speaks for the first time since the group had left the lair, startling the group and making them immediately fall silent. "Quiet, all of you," He abruptly snaps, lifting one fist, "There's a Kraang patrol up ahead. We move in at my signal."

"' Bout time! I was about to call it a night and head home," Casey whispers, flicking down his mask with one finger, "Finally! Get to bust some heads - _Goonga_ \- !"

Leonardo thrust his arm in front of the human, not even flinching as the human ran head-on against it, stumbling back with a wheeze and clutching at his throat. "That's funny, I don't remember giving a signal. Verbal or otherwise," He says dryly, not noticing the human and the other three turtles staring at him with their jaws hanging, "I'm going to scale the side of the building so that I can get a better look at their numbers and weaponry. Keep an eye on me and wait for the signal."

With soundless steps across the concrete and a front flip towards the opposite building, the mutant turtle is out of sight. Immediately the human boy squeals in a hushed whisper, "Damn! When did he get so strict? I think he dented my windpipe -"

"Don't be so dramatic," The purple cladded turtle interjects, keeping his steely gaze skyward, awaiting the signal, "Let's just all keep our eyes open. He's not in the mood tonight, so I don't think any of us should push his buttons... And by us I mean Raphael."

"Hey! I'm not the only one that butts heads with him," The red cladded turtle objects with a growl, "Besides, it's Mikey we should be worrying about. He's the one that was plannin' on puttin' ketchup packets under the toilet seat to rile him up!"

"Uh, guys -" The human starts, pointing towards the rooftop.

The orange cladded turtle exclaims in dismay, "Great! Now you've ruined it. Besides, it wasn't just meant for him," He raises his hands in mock surrender, "I don't discriminate with my pranks. Anyone is game."

"Guys, for real-" Casey hisses more insistently.

Donatello snaps, "Giant who cares! Both of you had better get used to walking on eggshells around him!"

"Dudes! The signal," Casey shrieks at last, frantically wagging his finger towards the empty rooftop, "Well, he's gone now...I think he got tired of signaling and left - Wait -"

"Holy chalupa - He's taking on that entire Kraang squad himself," Donatello exclaims in shock, sliding his bo staff from the sheath on his back and charging towards the building.

Raphael draws his sais, twirling them expertly, before charging after his brother, muttering under his breath, "Great, now we're gonna get an earful."

" _Booyakasha_ ," Michelangelo exclaims enthusiastically as he spins his nunchucks, before catching them back under his armpits, "That we are, my bro."

"It is the ones known as the turtles," One Kraang robot utters, raising its weapon cautiously, "How does Kraang wish to proceed, Kraang?"

"Kraang will distract the ones known as the turtles, while Kraang captures the one known as the leader of the ones known as the turtles," Another Kraang answers, turning his weapon towards the approaching group.

Donatello growls, "They're after Leo! But why -"

Leonardo slashes the katanas that are in either hand simultaneously, slicing two of the robots in half while their alien occupiers squeal and begin to drag themselves away by their tentacles. "Ah, so you guys haven't left me here to my inevitable doom," He quips, raising his twin katana in front of himself, "How lovely."

"We'll write you some apology notes later," Raphael retorts, shoving his sai into the underside of one of the robot's head, "Why are they after you - ?"

"Does it matter," The blue cladded turtle barks out, grabbing the spindly, metallic arm of one of the robots attempting to pin him to the wall, and throws him over his shoulder, "They're after me, and they're not — _ugh_ —laying off!"

Casey grunts, swiping out another robot's feet from under it with his hockey stick, jesting aloud, "Maybe they're experimenting with attitude adjustments."

"Well, I'm sorry if I'm less than cordial when a bunch of alien robots are trying to -" Leonardo yells out, throwing a shuriken at the head of a robot sneaking up behind the latter, embedding it in its eye with a spray of sparks,"-dissect me!"

"Thanks, dude," The human grunts in appreciation, "Now, duck!"

The blue cladded turtle goes to his knees, sliding across the pavement with his swords on either side of him, and severs several robot's legs. He goes to his feet, sheathing his sword as he declares, "I think that was the last of them."

The purple cladded turtle inquires, "Why the shell were they after you specifically? I mean, there are four mutant turtles, why choose you - ?"

"I don't know," The blue cladded turtle interjects harshly, "I think that wraps it up for the night, let's head back to the lair."

"There's somethin' you're not tellin' us, man," The red cladded turtle snaps, "Look, I know we've been ordered to just step around the topic, but I can't take it anymore more - You've been actin' off ever since you went down with that damn ship -"

_The water angrily surges just below his neck. The blood seeps from the wound in his shoulder, spilling into the rising waves._

"-and you ain't been yourself! Now, you better fess up right here and right now -"

Blood gushes from the tear in his neck, pulsing past his scrabbling fingers. The metallic taste fills his mouth.

"-what are you hiding from us?"

Leonardo gulps and he can feel his pulse pounding in his temples. "I..." With hands clasped tightly in front of his stomach he constantly fiddled with his knuckles, weaving his fingers in and out of each other," I...I don't...I can't..." His fingers fumble into his belt, clenching desperately around a smoke bomb.

"Leo," Donatello starts, raising a hand behind himself to signal the others of the group not to approach, "It's okay. Whatever it is...you can tell us. We're your brothers, your teammates. There is nothing you can say, nothing that will ever make us turn our backs to you. You have to know that."

Michelangelo adds softly, "Yeah, my bro. We may not have ears, but we'll listen."

The blue cladded turtle slowly lifts his head, acknowledging lowly, "You say that now," He crushes the smoke bomb within his grip, instantly engulfing the area with thick white smoke. He weaves into the obscureness, crouching low as he backs out of the area the group occupies, "But you have no idea...none..."

———

"Look, Leo. I know you've been having your difficulties lately. I mean, whenever I talk to one of your brothers it takes a lot of willpower to keep myself from telling them to just stop with all the complaining, you know," April starts tentatively, her eyes scanning over the mutant turtle, "And when I get a call from one of your brothers, saying they have no clue where the shell you are is a pretty good indicator that your brothers are being a bit...overprotective."

"They called," Leonardo groans, burying his face in his hands. After a brief moment, he lifts his head back up. His gaze flickered back towards her and the human girl smiled at him, but his friend didn't return it.

The human girl gently tells him, "Everyone needs to get away sometimes. I get it."

Hesitantly, the blue cladded turtle inched forward, stating aloud, "Yeah. But it's... I don't know how to explain it. It's different, somehow," A barely noticeable flush is highlighted against his cheekbones, "All I know is.....I-I can't go back, at least not right now."

"No situation is gonna be the same, Leo, "April replies knowingly, "And hey, I'm not here to criticize anyone. I've done my share of stupid things in the past too. But the funny thing is, if you never do anything stupid, you'll never do anything smart. My dad tells me that."

"I know what I'm doing is stupid! I can't avoid telling them for the rest of our lives," Leonardo admits sheepishly, "But...I don't know what else to do. For now, I just need some space from them."

"Hey, is that all you need to talk to me about?"

The turtle glanced back up sharply. "Yeah," He answers curtly, "As I said, I just had to get away for a bit. I just wanted to know what you thought, and all. Y-you won't say anything to them right?"

April shook her head, reassuring him, "Of course not! My lips are sealed," She makes a locking motion over her lips and sends him a wink, "So where are you going?"

Leonardo lets out an exasperated sigh, stating, "Home. It's getting late- or early, I suppose." He says looking out the window as the sun slowly rose, "I think I've given my family enough heart-attacks lately."

"You don't look like you wanna go back."

Laughing, the blue cladded turtle finally cracked a smile. The human girl didn't know what was stranger, seeing him being curt and straightforward or watching him now that he was more comfortable with her. Either way, it wasn't the mutant turtle she was used to. Watching the way the barely-there smile makes the corners of his eyes crinkle, the girl decides with her smile she could get used to it.

"I don't. Shell....I-I don't want to."

April takes a deep breath, suggesting to the latter, "Look, why don't you stay the night? Dad is out of town until tomorrow, so you wouldn't have to worry about being seen."

Leonardo shook his head, replying, "That's cool of you, but I'll be all right. Besides, I'm already testing the limits enough as it is."

Leaning forward on the couch, April puts her hand on his. "Hey, if I weren't worried about you, Leo, I wouldn't be offering. But that's something a friend does from time to time. You've helped me out on more than one occasion when I thought I had things covered. The least you can do for yourself is to trust me here."

Leonardo gulped nervously as his wide eyes took in the latter, and a blush spread to his cheeks. He sighed and rather guiltily, he nodded. "All right."


	3. Watching Me Fall

April wanders into the living room, her eyes still bleary and slack with sleep as she yawns aloud. She rubs the edge of her sleeve across her face, trying to rub off the line of drool on the corner of her mouth. Her light blue eyes dart over to the open window, and narrow at the curtains billowing in the night wind pouring in and she shivers consciously. Then her eyes register the five-foot-tall mutant turtle standing off to the side of the window, standing at his full height with his arms slack at his sides as he mutters nonsensically to himself. He arm gives a slight twitch, shifting in place.

The human girl cocks one eyebrow as she murmurs," Leo...? The sun isn't even up yet, are you already going for a training run," She edges closer going to stand off to his right side, leaning forward to see his face," Leo?"

Leonardo's eyes are lightly closed, his lips parted ever so slightly as he mutters under his breath," I'm underwater...deep, deep underwater. I'm drowning," He pauses his breath guttering from his lips and he gives a slow methodical nod,"...Yes."

"Leo - Leo you're just having a dream. A-a bad one... Let me help you back to bed," April whispers, taking a cautious step forward with her hand extended, her fingers grasping at empty air. Then the latter lets out a startled breath and he stumbles forward, hands slapping against the window's outline," Leo! Leo, please...you're scaring me. Just let me -"

"Mikey! No, get away from there," The blue cladded turtle abruptly screams, making the human girl let out a yelp and jump a few feet back. Then he leaps up swiftly onto the edge of the window, eyelids still shut, and without so much as a creaking from the wood underneath his feet or even a disruption in the wind, he front flips out the window onto the fire escape.

The human girl emits a tiny shriek as she scurries over to the open window, leaning out of it as she exclaims," Leo -! Oh, shoot - I didn't get enough sleep for this," She hesitates, before letting out a groan and slides out of the open window, her bare feet slapping on the cold metal of the fire escape," Leo... _Leo_...!"

"Mikey, get back here! Right now - I'm not joking," Leonardo snaps angrily, jumping off the edge of the fire escape, before kicking off of the brick wall on the other side of the building, catching the railing of the ladder and doing a backflip from it. He lands crouched on his feet, his breath coming from his gaping mouth in harsh pants," Get away from there...! _Mikey_ -"

April quickly scuttles down the fire escape, practically sliding down the ladder and gets to the bottom just in time to find the latter pulling a manhole cover over his head as he recedes into the sewers. She hauls the manhole cover back up with a strained grunt, panting harshly as she eases herself down the ladder and jumps past the last three rungs in an attempt to catch up with the mutant turtle. She wrinkles her nose at the foul odor, giving a slight shake of her head as begins to sprint across the wet pavement. Her fingers fumble into her pajama bottom's pockets and she yanks out her cellphone, fingers flying across the screen. She brings it to her ear just in time to hear a single ring, before a voice answers.

"April," Donatello inquires on the other end, voice alert," Are you alright - Did something happen? Oh, my poor, sweet cherry blossom - I'll be over there in two shakes of a turtle's tail -"

April cuts in sharply," I'm fine! It's Leo - Does he sleepwalk that you know of?"

There's a brief pause, before the purple cladded turtle answers uncertainly," Well, he used to there for a while, when we were little. We couldn't have been more than five, er, maybe six...? I don't even remember it," He sighs aloud, the signal crackling," I just hear stories from Raph. Why...? Is he - ?"

"Yes," The human girl exclaims with a hiss," He somehow managed to blindly front flip out of my window, and now he's taking me on a tour of the sewers! What do I do? I heard that it's dangerous to wake up sleepwalkers, but if I don't act soon he's going to end up wandering into open traffic and end up on Channel Six News!"

"Uh, well, most experts recommend that you don't wake up a sleepwalker because they're likely to lash out at whoever did it. And considering the fact that he's an expertly trained ninja that could probably take out someone with, well, with his eyes closed..." Donatello trails off," Okay, just let me wake up the guys -"

April interjects," No! I'm already here. Just - Just let me handle this, okay," She watches as a shadow recedes into another tunnel, and she skids to a halt, turning," Tell me what to do and quick! I've almost caught up to him - I'm right on his toes!"

"I'm tracking your phone signal and it looks like neither of us has a choice in this. He's running in the exact opposite direction of the lair, and it'll take too much time for me or the rest of the team to get there," The purple cladded turtle confirms with a distressed sigh," Don't touch him unless it is absolutely necessary! Just get close to him and make as much loud noise as you can to try and wake him up! Can you do that?"

"I can't promise anything, but I'll try," The human girl replies," Track both of our phones, just in case something goes wrong - I'm hanging up now!"

"Mikey, no! No!"

April gulps heavily as the roar of water thrums into his ears. She nearly slips on the slick concrete as she comes upon a long chain of bars that protrude from the concrete wall that is bent and split in the middle, leaving a small opening she crawls through. She quickly gets to her feet her eyes taking in the spacious area with large, rusty pipes protruding from the walls that lead to a cavernous hole in the middle of space that's filled with a roaring whirlpool of water. And the mutant turtle as at the very edge, his bandana tails whipping in a flurry behind him in the wind.

" _Leo_ ," April cries out running towards him haphazardly, her bare feet slapping against the moist, mildew-ridden ground.

"Mikey! Mikey, I'm sorry...I'm so sorry. Please, please, just get away from the edge," Leonardo pleads, his voice trembling as he edges one arm forward, offering it to the figure of his feverish dreams," Come to me...Walk slowly..."

April grabs a rusty, discarded pipe, clenching it in her grip as she slams it against the larger pipes expending from the ground. The pipe shakes violently in her hands and the sound of metal on metal reverberates throughout the space, but the mutant turtle doesn't even give a twitch in response. She grits her teeth, swinging the small pipe in her hand's against the larger one repeatedly, as she helplessly watches the latter take a step closer to the edge. Then his arms are thrown in front of himself as he takes a few stumbling, desperate steps towards the swirling torrents, a cry of despair tearing from his lips as he makes a motion to lunge forward. Hesitating for a split second, she throws the pipe to the ground and rushes towards him, her arms flailing around his torso as she skids to a halt, digging her heels into the rough concrete as she heaves him back with all of her strength. She feels the back of his shell press into her chest and the breath is forced from her lungs as the two stumble back simultaneously.

"Mikey," Leonardo cries, pulling against her grip and nearly throwing her forward," No! No! Mikey, hold on -"

April clenched her eyes shut, grabbing either one of her elbows as she tightens her grip around him, leaning her face into the back of his shell. Her arms are secured over his, and she can feel the muscles rippling beneath her, about to throw her off with ease when his body abruptly goes still against her's. The blue cladded turtle goes to his knees, dragging the human girl down with him as he tosses his head forward, loud, scrabbling breathes escaping his lips. She keeps her face pressed against the cool, yet rough surface of the shell, her fiery red hair brushing against him. She hadn't even realized it that she was crying softly until she felt the warm, salty tear cascade down her cheek, dribbling down the surface of the shell and she chokes out as a whimper as her arms tremble uncontrollably around the turtle's taut, muscular form.

Leonardo utters weakly, stiff in her grip,"...A-April...? Where...where am I...?"

April sniffs, letting out a shaky exhale as she draws her shaking arms away. "I...I don't know. I don't know. Y...You started sleepwalking and I just followed," She answers hoarsely as she ravels her arms around herself, embracing herself,"And then you...you almost...you almost jumped into the drain pipe and - "

The blue cladded turtle shifts on his knees, turning to face the human girl with a stony expression in his face. He pauses, then slowly settles his hands over her shoulders and giving them a firm, reassuring squeeze. "It's okay. Hey," He raises his voice catching her attention and her eyes flicker up to meet his," It's okay, April. I'm fine...We're both fine. Come on, let's get you home."

The human girl nods stiffly, going to her feet as she rubs her sleeve across her face, wiping away the drying tears. The blue cladded turtle pulls one arm away but keeps one hand on her shoulder as steers her out the mutilated grate that blocked the area off, towards the tunnels. The pair is awkwardly silent, for only the trickle of water and their own padding footsteps can be heard in the winding tunnel they walk side by side down. The mutant turtle frowns deeply, his eyes staying glued to the concrete beneath his feet as a soft pink flush creeps up his cheeks. He nervously rubs his neck as he abruptly stops, making the girl stop in turn as she glances at him.

"April, I...I just wanted to say...thanks," Leonardo remarks, embarrassed," You, you kinda put your life on the line back there for me and I can't help but feel like...like I owe you. Shell, I owe you big time."

April cracks a smile, stepping close to the turtle as she replies," Wow, the great Fearless Leader owes me. Wait until the guys hear this," She giggles softly, her lips parting to give him a weak smile," In all seriousness, you don't owe me a thing. I just did what you do for me on the daily. And I...I was so, so scared because for a second it looked like - It looked like I was going to lose you."

The blue cladded turtle stares at the girl quizzically, until his face contorts with a brief realization and he states in a stiff voice," Come on. It's late, and I'm sure you're tired," The blue cladded turtle questions her as he starts embarking down the tunnel again," Are you okay?"

"Yeah, fine...it's just...I keep thinking about when you were sleepwalking and how you kept calling for Mikey," April utters as she walks behind him," Do you remember what you were dreaming?"

"It wasn't a dream...or at least it didn't feel like it because it was really more of an old memory," Leonardo responds as his arms cross over his shell, and his pace slows as a thoughtful expression spread across his features," When the guys and I were around six years old, they decided to wander away from our usual tunnels and ended up where we just were. At that drain pipe. They were angry at something I'd said, or done, it's been so long now that I can't even remember, and they needed to vent. Raph was kind of the ring leader of their antics at the time so they all followed his lead. There used to be a small walkway across that drainage pipe, and they were playing on it. The thing was old and rusty, basically condemned and it was taped off."

April remarks dubiously," I take there's a reason it's not there anymore?"

"Yeah, uh, I remember finding them goofing off on it and yelling at them to get the shell off. That, of course, only made them want to stay on it even longer, and they started jumping up and down on it. I grabbed Don and Raph by their arms and just barely managed to drag them off, but Mikey...Mikey was at the very end and he was fast, so fast, so he kept on dodging me every time I tried to grab him and..." Leonardo gulps thickly, going stock still as he stops walking entirely," It broke off from one side while both of us were still on it. I managed to grab him by his arm, but I didn't have the strength to haul both of us back up. It was cold and wet and I was so tired. I threw him up over my shell and allowed him to crawl up, and he managed to get off just before it broke the rest of the way."

"Oh, my gosh, Leo," April exclaims in dismay," How did you -"

"I don't remember anything in between that and waking up in a tunnel not too far away a few days later. Master Splinter and my brothers found me. They'd been wandering all through the sewers, worried sick that I...I didn't make it. But they still had a little sliver of hope because the drainage pipe passed through several tunnels, and they found me at the very last one," The blue cladded turtle explains as he resumes his brisk walk, the human girl trailing behind with her heavy gaze boring into his shell," For a few months after that I'd sleepwalk and I always managed to find my way back there...to that drainage pipe. Luckily, it got barred off, or it was... Anyway, I hadn't done that in a good number of years, but I guess with everything going on lately, I've just started falling into old habits."

The human girl states as they reach the ladder leading back up to the surface," Leo, I don't know what it is that you're going through right now, and I'm not going to pressure you into telling me," She goes on after a beat," But I want you to know that...I know what it feels like better than anyone to not be sure of themselves, of who they are."

Leonardo turns to the human girl, confused before he let's out a short laugh," Right, psychic," He sighs tiredly, the smallest of smiles still on his lips and he gave a toss of his head as he gripped the rungs of the ladder," Look, April, I don't...I don't know if I can really talk to anyone right now about what's going on inside my head. I want to, believe me, I do. I just feel like if I tell anyone that our already bat-shit crazy lives are going to be taken to a whole new level of insane."

"Okay, Leo. I told you I wasn't going to pressure you, and I won't," April replies understandingly as she begins to follow him up the ladder," Well, I don't think I'm going to be able to sleep after all that just went down. How about I make us some hot cocoa and we find some movies to watch until it's time to head back to the lair?"

"Sounds good to me," Leonardo comments as he pushes up the manhole, peaking his head up, before crawling out. He offers his hand to the human girl, gently pulling her up. As he slides the manhole back into place, he doesn't notice the small, luminous fungi hiss softly before edging back into the darkness as the cover goes down.

———

"You know, Casey, it's awesome having someone else who knows about the turtles. I had like no one to talk to," April exclaims with her arms folded behind her head as she walks down the sewer tunnel with Casey, Leonardo wandering up ahead.

Casey scoffs, responding," Gotta admit the whole thing's pretty mind-blowing. Bunch of ninja turtles living in the sewers with their rat master? I mean, you couldn't make this stuff up," His eyes dart up ahead to the mutant turtle and he whispers," What was Leo already doing with you anyway? He gave the guys and me a bit of a heart attack when he pulled that disappearing act."

"Oh, he was, uh, just hanging out last night. I think he just needs some time to sort out whatever it is he's struggling with, so you guys need to lay off," The human girl answers shortly, her eyes narrowing.

"Jeez, Red," The human boy responds, holding his hands up in mock defense," I didn't know you felt so strongly on the subject. I'll lay off, but I don't control the guys, you know."

April shakes her head, before changing the subject. "So what's with the mask," She asks curiously," It's not like the turtles don't know who you are."

"Same reason people have worn masks throughout history: 'Cause it looks cool," Casey replies haughtily, before letting out an exaggerated gag," Ugh. Doesn't help with the smell, though."

Leonardo, in true ninja fashion, is suddenly right in front of them, making them both jolt, with one arm raised that's curled into a fist. "I've lived in these sewers all of my life," He utters lowly as moves his arm towards the sheathes strapped to his back," That's not the usual smell." 

April adds, wrinkling her nose," Something does smell really weird, like moldy cheese and puke."

From the distance, a scream bursts through the tunnel, and the mutant turtle darts off to the side, sinking into the shadows just as a human sewer maintenance worker comes bolting down the tunnel. He roughly shoves the two teenagers aside as sewer water splashes around his thundering footfalls. The blue cladded turtle emerges from the shadows, going to stand in between the two humans with a deep frown on his lips.

"Where'd he go," Casey asks, before wandering in the direction the man had scurried," Hello? Crazy dude?"

"It doesn't matter," Leonardo responds briskly," Something isn't right. We need to call my brothers and get to the lair."

April concurs," Something's wrong."

April hesitated for a moment, before trailing after Casey and motions for Leonardo to follow her, but she halts in front of an intersecting tunnel. She feels the mutant's fingers curl around her arm as she leans forward, peering down into the azure space as she lets out a gasp. The mutant turtle tries to gently pull her away, but she plants her feet in the ground.  
Big, yellow eyes blink glisten in the darkness, then there's a burst of luminous spores that take to the air. The blue cladded turtle stumbles back in a haze, gagging and coughing uncontrollably as the spores flood into his mouth, surging up into his flared nostrils. He balls up his fist and puffs wetly into it as he leans against the tunnel's wall. He tries to blink away the sheen of hot tears in his vision as he breathes shallowly. He fumbles his shaky fingers forward, clenching them down on a piece of cloth as he blinks rapidly.

Casey crouches down beside the pair, questioning April first," You okay, Red? What'd you see?"

April let's out a weak cough, lifting her up and her eyes widen in horror as her mouth arches open to release a long, high-pitched scream. She tears away from the three-fingered hand gripping on the sleeve of her shirt. Flailing her arms in front of herself defensively as she staggers backward, she turns on her heel and hurtles herself in the opposite direction.

"April? April," Casey calls after her.

"A-April...?" Leonardo wheezes, and then he jolts when he feels a hand on his shoulder blade, directing his watery gaze towards the human boy," Casey - Something's wrong...my head - Gah, you've gotta go get the guys...my brothers..."

"Bro? What the heck did you guys see," The human boy demands, hauling him up with a grunt," Leo...? Aw, c'mon don't you go running off on me too."

The blue cladded turtle pushes away the human boy as he settles a hand over his forehead, floundering his way across the misty sewer water. He cranes his neck back in the human boy's direction and he slaps his palm over his mouth as he lets out a throaty gasp. The human boy is suddenly strewn out against the side of the tunnel, his mask resting atop his messy head of raven hair and his lips are parted as he wheezes weakly. He coughs, a spray of blood exploding from his lips as he weakly shifts his head to face the mutant turtle.

"Y-You...you let them do this," Casey chokes out, blood foaming from his lips. His eyes go wide and he lets out a croaking breath, then his face goes slack, his eyes going still in their sockets and staring emptily at nothing.

"No, no, no - No! Casey," Leonardo cries out in anguish, going to his knees beside the human, gripping the sides of his face," No, please, no...Who did this? Who did this?!"

There's a weak cough from a few feet away and he whips his head around and his eyes settle on a figure stumbling forward. "L-Leo..." The human girl wheezes, tear streaks running down her face as she collapses against his chest,"...T-They're...g-gone...! G-Gone. W-where w-w...were y-y-you...?"

The blue cladded turtle kneels, gently laying her on the ground as his eyes skim over her bruised and battered form. Her left eye is swollen shut, her upper lip busted, but her mouth is gaping and spilling blood. His eyes settle on a scorch mark on the lower side of her chest, fusing her clothes with her skin and obliterating the tissue and muscle beneath, leaving only dried sections of blood around the pulsating wound. He grimaces, cupping her face and gently turning her head away. She doesn't push against him, she simply flutters her eyes shut and releases a gasping choke for air.

"Sh-Shredder...K-Kraang...t-t-too m-many..."

"Don't look, April. Just take deep breaths and hold on to me. I'm going to get you to Don," Leonardo reassures her, gently tucking a stray strand of hair behind her ear," He's going to fix you, okay? He's going to fix you..."

April shakes her head, gulping thickly as she hisses," W-who's g-going t-to fi-fix h-hi-him," Her fingers scrabble up his arm, her nails digging into his elbow as she pulls him closer and whispers tearfully," Y-Y-You...d-did...t-t-t-this...Y-You f-f-failed..."

The blue cladded turtle stiffens when he feels her petite hands tense against his skin, before they slowly cascade down his arm, hitting the concrete below with a dull thud. He bows his head, brushing his fingers over her open eyelids, tenderly pushing them down and his fingers graze her eyelashes. Cradling her limp neck in his palm, he gently lowers the rest of her body onto the concrete, before he goes upright to his feet. His eyes flicker back and forth between the two human corpses strewn across the sewer tunnel's and before he can muffle it, push it back down a deep, throaty cry escapes his lips. And he shoves his hand over his mouth, clenching his eyes shut as he groans into his palm.

"Raph, Don, Mikey," Leonardo realizes aloud, and then he's bolting down the tunnel, the cold, murky sewer water splashing up his legs. He doesn't know how long he wanders the sewers, his mind foggy as he simply follows where his legs carry him. Eventually, he comes to the end of the tunnel he was tumbling down, and he finds himself in a spacious junction that leads to another set of tunnels at the far end.

The area has much evidence of a great fight that had occurred in his absence. The walls are covered in scorch marks from laser-powered weaponry, and there are several dozen shurikens etched into the brick with chunks taken out of the walls. There were several impact points across the brick walls and some of the cracks have blood etched into them. The mutilated remains of both Krang exoskeletons and Footbots are dispersed throughout the area, laying in great heaping piles with their weapons either limp in their grip or flung out of their reach. three limp forms are splayed out on the ground, all positioned differently as if a sculptor had crafted their fanned out limbs out of thick marble.

Leonardo stumbles forward, almost in a haze as he individually scrutinized each pale, lifeless form before his eyes. He abruptly plummets backward, his shell slamming against the brick wall with a reverberating thud. There was something solemn swimming in his eyes. Their stunning, deep blue held an almost unfathomable truth that his face could not hide as his lower lip trembled and his eyelids slid closed. His hand brushes against his mouth as he let's out a strangled moan, and he cracks open his teary eyes, gazing feebly at the corpses.

Donatello was sprawled out on his side, several laser burns etched into his skin. The largest one had hit him square in the middle of his chest and had splintered his plastron, exposing the flesh and bone underneath, leaving the area around it charred. The blood around it was scorched into the mutilated remains of his plastron. His bo staff was beneath his stiff fingers, blasted in half with the wood chips scattered all around him. His eyes are glassy, the lids slack over his reddish-brown eyes with his mouth hanging open, his final scream etched on his lips.

Michelangelo is laying across from Donatello, his fingers laying flaccid on his older brother's arm. One of his nunchakus is still in his tight grip, his fingers pale and stiff around the wooden rods. The other one is thrown a foot or so away from him, the chain is broken and the two rods etched with cracks. His freckled face is speckled with flecks of drying blood, his lips oozing a long line of the crimson liquid that dribbles onto the front of his plastron. His mortal wound is inflicted on the back of his shell, a wide, gaping tear that is surrounded by a pool of blood that oozes across the concrete. His baby blue eyes are glued on his other older brother laying not too far from him, the hand holding his nunchuck outstretched towards him.

Raphael was lying flat on the back of his shell, his muscular arms spread-eagled. His fingers were curled gently towards the top of the tunnel, palms open as if in offering. His emerald eyes were wide open and gazing emptily at the ceiling, his lips parted. A foot-long piece of metal is buried in his lower plastron, and blood coated the sides of his shell, the floor, seeping into the red tails of his mask, matting to his pale green skin. The metal is the blade of a katana, broken off at the hilt with the force of the blow. The hilt is laying a few feet away, the intricate pattern of strings torn and frayed.

Leonardo wailed and he was on his knees at his brother's side in an instant. And he wanted to touch him, cradle his face in his hands, but he couldn't bring himself to, not with that thing in his abdomen. Looking at where metal met flesh was like a stab in the heart, so he gripped the blade with both of his trembling hands and pulled it out. No blood seeped out of the wound, and he knew if his heart had still been beating, it would have been a geyser. Tears ran silently down his face as he heaved his brother's limp body upwards, propping his head against his chest and pulling him close, settling his chin atop his head.

"This isn't real. This isn't real," Leonardo whispers pathetically as more tears trickle down his cheeks. He grits his teeth tightly, clenching his eyes shut," It can't be. It can't...it isn't...Please, please, please...Raph, Don, Mikey..."

The blue cladded turtle shakes his head in stubborn denial, tightly pursing his lips. He gently settles the corpse down onto the damp concrete beneath him, his fingers flinching at the feeling of the cooling blood. He crawls forward cupping his hands over the purple cladded turtle's face, patting his cheeks and grazing his thumbs over his jawline. The skin is ice cold at the touch, the muscles taut as he coaxes involuntary movement from them. He inclines his head forward resting his forehead against the latter's own, his fingers fiddling with the long tails of his mask. Then he hesitantly raises his head once more, stiffly turning his head to the youngest of the orange cladded turtle.

"Mikey -" Leonardo stops, the words dying on the tip of his tongue. The tears fall like the soft patter of rain just as a great storm brews.

The blue cladded turtle buries his face in his baby brother's neck, inhaled deeply, smelling the heady sweat and the bitter, metallic blood. He ravels his arms around his small, svelte form, feels his slender muscles beneath his fingers. The short ends of his mask tickle his palm, brushing in between his fingers as he cradled his lolling neck. The sobs were stifled at first as he attempted to hide his grief, but all pretense of quiet coping was lost when he meets those eerily still baby blue eyes. He sobbed into the crease of his baby brother's neck and the tears dripped down his cold skin, burning like hot oil. His breathing was ragged, gasping and the strength left his limbs as he went boneless against his brother.

"No! No, no, no," Leonardo spits out, slamming his balled fist into the ground beside him," _Noooooo_!"

———

Michelangelo is laying on his stomach while leaning on his elbows, his legs kicking enthusiastically behind him in the air. He chirps, his eyes glued to the cartoon playing on the television screen," I heard in the original Japanese version, Coolstar gets squashed for real."

Donatello disagrees, waving one hand towards his younger brother and not taking his eyes away from his phone," That's just a cartoon myth," He snaps his head up abruptly," She still hasn't texted, or called, or emailed - She's gone radio silent on me! After all, that went down last night -"

"Cool your jets, Don," Raphael cuts in with a scoff," You're just jealous that Leo got to have a slumber party with your puppy love."

"Or I'm worried for my older brother and leader, who is obviously in quite a bit of mental distress," The purple cladded turtle replies, glaring at the latter. Then a flush creeps up his face and he concedes," Okay, maybe it's a little bit of both."

"You've got issues, man," The red cladded turtle comments, rolling his eyes," Speakin' of issues, our Fearless Leader seems to have more than any magazine as of late."

The orange cladded turtle cuts in, "Yeah, dude. I'm really starting to get worried. At first, I thought he was just still a little jumpy after the whole invasion thing. I mean, after what went down on that stinking ship... But he still hasn't chilled out," He huffs, going on, "And he won't even tell us what went down that night he came in...all covered in blood..."

"It seems prying only makes it worse. Besides, I have a feeling the cork is going to pop off that unopened bottle, and soon," Donatello remarks gravely.

Raphael raises a brow, inquiring suspiciously,"And what makes you say that, Don?"

"Well - Uh, well...Oh, shell," Donatello huffs, a deep frown settling on his lips,"I, er, sort of told April I'd try and keep it on the down low -"

The conversation is interrupted by a harsh, loud panting as Casey leaps over the turnstiles leading into the lair and exclaims, "Guys! April. Leo. Sewers. Hurry!"

"Casey, what's wrong," Raphael demands, swiftly standing up from his lax position on the couch.

"We were on our way here. Next thing I know April starts acting freaked out, then runs off. I tried to see if Leo knew what her deal was, but then he started rambling to himself and ran off too! They're both gone!"

Donatello interjects, "Wait, wait. You just lost April and Leo?"

"Dude," Raphael yells angrily, "How the shell did you lose them?! One's a giant frickin' turtle - A little hard to miss - "

Michelangelo remarks, placing a hand on the latter's chest to keep him from charging forward, "Relax, you guys," He crosses his arms over his chest, "I'm sure there's a logical explanation like they were eaten by a giant sewer snake or something."

"Let's go," Donatello exclaims, slamming into Casey with little regard and sending him flying off to the side.

———

Casey abruptly stops in the intersection between two winding tunnels, wondering aloud," I think I-I-I lost them around here."

"You think," Donatello demands, stomping towards where the human is waiting," Oh, that's not vague or anything."

Growling lowly, Casey retorts," Back off, stick master."

"Who you callin' stick master, puck head?"

Raphael interjects by slapping the human and the mutant turtle upside their heads, snapping irritably," Shut it, both of you! I can't think with you two gawping in my ear!"

"Ha! Now you know how it feels - Ow," Michelangelo yelps as Donatello's hand goes flying to swat against his cheek.

"Whoa, Don! Don't smack, Mikey," The red cladded turtle exclaims," That's my job!

The orange cladded turtle yells," Hey! Do I look like a piñata?"

The human boy screeches to a halt crying out," Rats," He holds his hockey stick close to his chest, his eyes wide and glued to a small group of rats huddled in a take-out container," Why'd it have to be rats?"

"Dude, they're everywhere down here," Michelangelo states happily, a smile playing across his lips as he scoops up a rat by its tail and cuddles it against his face," They're nature's cuddly little friends."

Casey groans in disgust, taking a step back," What's wrong with you," He shakes his head and sits on the edge of a tunnel coming out of the wall when a soft chirping comes from behind him," You hear that?"

"Hear what, dude?"

Casey pokes his head further into the tunnel, then comes stumbling out, coughing violently as a luminous yellow substance is blasted into the air around him. "That was hideous," The human boy chokes out, stooping over.

Raphael places his hands on his hips as he quips," Dude, you put your nose in a New York City sewer. What'd you expect?"

Casey mutters weakly," I thought I saw —" He freezes directing his gaze towards the tunnel again, before screaming and running backward until his back is up against the wall," The demon rat! It's here, it's real!"

"Demon rat," Donatello repeats dumbly," Sounds like you took a few too many hits at hockey practice — What on earth?"

The human boy is swinging his hockey stick back and forth frantically across the tunnel, screaming hysterically as he hops from foot to foot. "Get 'em off me," He shrieks in a high pitched voice," They're everywhere!"

The red cladded turtle sighs aloud, cocking his head towards the purple cladded turtle. They both nod simultaneously and jump forward, pining the human boy's arms on the sewer walls

"Not gonna lie. That felt pretty good," Donatello admits with a smirk.

"Let me out! Let me out," Casey pleads, struggling against the hands holding him in place.

Raphael barks out," Calm down, man," He slowly eases away and the red cladded turtle demands in annoyance," What is your malfunction?"

In the distance, there's a blood curdling scream and the purple cladded turtle exclaims," April," Then he takes off in the direction the scream originated from," I'm coming, my sweet!"

The red cladded turtle rolls his eyes, muttering," Great, just great. Leave me here with the one who flew over the cuckoo's nest," Then another scream echoed across the tunnels and he froze, feeling his heart start to hammer anxiously in his chest, going completely silent, before shouting,"Leo. Leo!"

"That sounded like him, bro," Michelangelo remarks, nervous.

"C'mon, Mikey! Let dollar-bin Romeo chase his frickin' Juliet - We've gotta find our brother," Raphael proclaims, tilting his head in the direction of the scream, yanking out his sais with a flourish.


	4. The Queen Piece

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> This is going to be quite the trip.

Raphael skids to a halt at the end of the tunnel and comes upon a large junction in the sewers. Michelangelo squeals in surprise as he slams headfirst into the back of his brother's shell, throwing both of them forward. Groaning, the red cladded turtle roughly shoves off his younger brother, going to his feet while simultaneously yanking his brother back up by his belt. The orange cladded turtle giggles nervously as he rubs the back of his neck, shying away from his older brother when he shoots him a menacing glare and raises his fist threateningly. 

Michelangelo flinches, jumping backward at the feint of a punch. "Oh, a wise guy," He growls in annoyance, pouting as he petulantly kicks sewer water in his brother's direction. 

"Hey, Mikey! Can you keep it down to only slightly deafening," Raphael barks in return, swiftly sidestepping the spray of water as the pair travel farther into the spacious intersection between the sewers. 

Then Raphael drags his arm off to his side, blocking his younger brother from moving any further just as his eyes spot a hunched figure lurking in the shadows. His fingers twitching over the hilts of his twin sai and he hears the soft clinking of his younger brother's nunchaku. The hazy form emits deep and raw sounds of anguish that violently shudders from their lips like a wounded animal. The red cladded turtle spots a streak of blue as the figure shifts its head and he visibly deflates in relief, his hands shifting away from his sais. But he has never seen the blue cladded turtle sit like that, so deflated. His loose shoulders shook, his hands hanging low, making no attempt to conceal or even wipe away his own flowing tears.

"Leo," Michelangelo whispers in shock, frantically shoving his nunchaku back into his belt.

"Somethin' stinks about this whole situation. We've gotta get him back to the lair and pronto," Raphael states stiffly as he shakily moves a hand towards his brother, "Leo, Leo! Bro, listen to me. There's somethin' wrong, okay? Whatever you're seein' it ain't real -" 

Leonardo goes eerily still in that moment, a final whimper dying in his throat as a ragged breath escapes him. Raphael swears he can hear the grit of his teeth as a low, throaty growl emits from low within the latter's chest and rumbles across the space warningly. He straightens to his full height as he goes to his feet, his thick, green fingers menacingly curling the hilt of one katana, before drawing the sword to his side with the soft hiss of metal. 

"Y-You took them...you took them from me," The blue cladded turtle spits out venomously, sniffling wetly as he turns around to face his two brothers. The underside of the slits in his mask is dark with tears, his eyes bloodshot and his lips are curled into a snarl that reveals his bared teeth, "And now you have the nerve to come here with your blades at my back before their blood even cools. Now, you'll pay... You'll all pay the ultimate price!" 

A muscle in the red cladded turtle's jaw ticks as he quickly snatched his twin sai from his belt, twirling them expertly in hand and raising them in a defensive stance. "Look, Leo," He replies in a thick voice and backs up, pushing his younger brother back behind him in the process," You've gotta snap out of it - I don't want to fight you, damn it!"

"And you didn't even come alone. I bet you didn't even have the guts to kill them yourself," The blue cladded turtle scoffs, his arm twisting to turn the blade of his sword as he circles the latter.

The orange cladded turtle whimpers, nervously peeking from behind his older brother's shell," Dude, what the shell is he talking about?! He's totally scaring me!" 

"I ain't got a clue, Mikey. Everyone is frickin' losin' their damn marbles," The red cladded turtle replies shortly," Leo - Leo! Get that sword out of my face right now! Now!" 

Leonardo's fingers straighten out from around the sword, allowing it to clatter to the ground, much to the other two turtles' shared surprise. Then he steps close to the red cladded turtle, curling his fingers around his wrist and drawing the hand that held his sai to the unprotected spot of flesh just above the edge of his plastron, and he grits out in a pained tone," Then do it. Just end it. But I'll warn you...when I come back, I'm going to be pissed, and I'll find you...I'll find you when you're alone without your soldiers and your new alien bosom buddies and I'll tear you apart piece by piece. Do you hear me?" 

"What?! Shit, Leo," Raphael chokes out, yanking his arm away and blindly stumbling back away from his brother," The shell is he ramblin' about -?"

Leonardo hisses angrily," I'll kill you for what you did to them - Gah!"

Michelangelo has his kusarigama chain raveled around his brother's torso, keeping his arms snug at his sides as he frantically struggles against his bonds. Leonardo attempts to wrench his arms free from the chains bunched around him, grunting in exertion as the latter struggles to hold him in place, digging his heels into the concrete. Raphael intervenes, tugging the handles of the long, winding chain from his younger brothers and gripping them tightly in his own stronger grasp, reining in his older brother. 

"Guys," Donatello exclaims as he cautiously enters the junction, gently steering April by her shoulder blades," Guys - Oh, thank goodness! I found April but -"

Raphael cuts in growling in frustration as Leonardo bends over against the chains in an attempt to throw the latter over his shell," Lemme guess - She's gone cuckoo-for-cocoa-puffs? So's...Leo!" 

"Wait! What on earth is that noise," Donatello inquires curiously as April nervously glances around, her eyes wide in horror. 

There's a gentle whirring noise as a luminous sphere rolls across the concrete, flattening onto the surface. Then the thing chitters softly, and stands on a pair of long, spindly legs, revealing a small body beneath its dome-shaped head. 

"It's a mushroom. With feet," Michelangelo exclaims in delight, crouching down with a beaming grin to better observe the strange creature," Aw, it's so cute -" Then the thing lunges into the air, curling its lengthy limbs around the underside of the mutant turtle's neck is it suctions itself into place on the side of his face," Ahhhhhhh! Get it off of me! Get it off of me -" 

Donatello wedges his bo staff underneath the creature, swiftly pulling it off of his younger brother and swatting it across the junction. The creature curls in on itself, taking on its previous sphere form, then quickly rolls back towards the group. 

"It's on the move," The purple cladded turtle warns. 

The red cladded turtle grunts out laboriously as the back of his brother's shell slams into him, backing him up against the wall," Occupied!"

"I've got this," The orange cladded turtle cries out as the creature rolls towards him and he jerks the purple cladded turtle's bo staff from him, swinging it at the creature in an uncoordinated manner. He squeaks out nervously when the creature lunges upwards, raveling its tiny limbs around the end of the staff, and begins inching up to it with a chitter," I don't got this - I don't got this, bros! Ahhhhh!"

The purple cladded turtle wonders aloud in awe, "Fascinating. Evolved fungi. Oh, for -" He exclaims hurriedly," Use the blade - The blade, Mikey!"

"Oh, right," Michelangelo realizes with a sheepish look, retracting the blade at the end of the staff, before rapidly twirling the staff, sending the creature flying into the air with a squeal. Then he slices downward, cutting the creature in half with a spray of a glowing blue fluid," Ah, gross!"

April cries out as the fluid drizzles across her shirt, swatting her hands across the air," Get away from me! Ah!"

Leonardo screams in rage, bucking at his bonds like a raging bull as Raphael throws his weight down while going to his knees in an attempt to keep him held in place," No! No, I won't let you take me, coward! Kill me, Shredder!"

Slamming his hand against his cheeks as he gawks at the scene playing out before him, the orange cladded turtle screeches," What is goin' on?!"

The red cladded turtle without even taking a second to think out his actions swings his flat palm across the side of the blue cladded turtle's face. The older turtle's head snaps to side from the force of the slap throwing him onto his shoulder as he tumbles over in a heap of limbs. "Raph, why'd you -" Blinking rapidly, he utters lowly as his eyes take in the sight of his younger brother," Raph...Y-you're alive. No, I-I saw you...y-you were dead. But i-if y-you're... Mikey! Don!"

"It's okay, dude. We're fine," The orange cladded turtle informs the latter, sweeping a hand dramatically over his form, "We're totally fine! Look!"

The purple cladded turtle nods in reassurance, going to stand beside his older brother as he gently tells him," We're all okay, Leo. Just tell us what happened -"

"No! No...No," The blue cladded turtle hisses abruptly, frantically kicking his legs in the latter's general direction," Get away from me - Get away! I know you're not real... not real. He's showing me things - T-trying to trick me...! I'll never join him, never!" 

"Donnie? Quick explanation," Michelangelo yells as he jumps away from the flailing legs. 

"Wish I knew," Donatello replies honestly as he intertwines his fingers around the chains and helps Raphael heave Leonardo onto his plastron and pin him onto the ground," Leo - Leo, please! Stop this right now!" 

Raphael digs his knee into the back of Leonardo's shell, keeping his hand against the side of his head as he pushes him into the concrete to keep him from struggling. "Leo, listen - Damn it, listen! No one is tryin' to trick you! It's us... it's your brothers," Then he releases a high pitched yelp as the latter clamps his teeth over a finger dangling too close to his mouth," Did you just bite me?! Did you see - He bit me!"

The purple cladded turtle snorts, barely stifling a laugh that rises in his throat. When the latter glowers at him, he claims," Sorry, I was, uh, cleaning the airway." 

"Get - Keep away," The human girl whimpers, frightened as she shuffles away, using her arms to shield her face. 

"April," The purple cladded turtle insists as he wraps his arms around the erratically moving mutant turtle's legs, not noticing the girl approaching with her hand raised to swat him," April, there are no bats. I promise. Ow - !"

The orange cladded turtle clucks," That's gotta sting almost as much as rejection, my bro."

"What the shell is goin' on," The red cladded turtle demands through tight teeth as the blue cladded turtle writhes on the ground beneath him. 

"Fungus," Donatello exclaims in realization with his arms coiled tightly around the blue cladded turtle's muscular legs. 

"Language, please. There's a lady present," Michelangelo replies shortly with his nose in the air.

Shaking his head, Donatello goes on to explain," No, whatever's happening to Leo is happening to April and Casey. It's like - like they're experiencing their worst fears. And I think I know why," He grunts as the pair of legs trapped in his intertwined arms jolt up against him," We need to somehow move them to my lab so I can test them - Ow! He bit me! He's got sharp little teeth for a turtle." 

"Ha! Now you know how it feels," Raphael taunts, laughing mockingly. 

Donatello pries his finger out of the mutant turtle's mouth with a groan of disgust, then yells in a mixture of shock and pain as the latter's legs kick out simultaneously, crashing into his stomach and sending him skidding across the concrete. Leonardo plants his feet into the ground, then hoists himself upwards, flinging Raphael onto the floor with the back of his shell and making the handles of the kusarigama chain fall from his limp hands. The blue cladded turtle quickly unwinds the chains from around himself and without so much as a second glance, he takes off running down the tunnels. The red cladded turtle blinks blearily, his eyes flickering up to the quickly fading image of his brother and he stands on shaking legs, stumbling after him.

Breathing heavily, Raphael groans painfully as he grips the back of his head," Mikey! Try...try to catch up to Leo. Hurry." 

"On it," Michelangelo shouts with a nod, retreating down the tunnel his older brother took off down. He doesn't notice the small fungus creature chittering as it rolls past his feet. 

———

Leonardo goes to his knees, head whipping around frantically as he leans back against the tunnel wall. "...Krang...Shredder...they've gotta be on my tail," He mutters to himself, panting loudly as he bows his head. A warm, moist substance squelches underneath his fingers and he grimaced, raising his hand into his view. The substance is a luminous intermingled mix of blue and purple," Gotta...gotta keep goin'...Huh? What's this?"

A tiny fungus creature jumps into the air, spraying the yellow radiant spores into his face. His head snaps back in surprise, slamming into the wall as he coughs violently. Then nearly a dozen of the mushroom men line up in a straight formation in front of him, bending ever so slightly at their tiny knees. The blue cladded turtle blinks as the fungi mutated bring their minuscule arms forward into a circular position in front of themselves and plié in unison as a soft piano melody plays. Another row comes hopping in a perfect linear row from behind a large stalk of the glowing ooze dripping from the walls onto the floor, weaving across the tunnel with pique turns as the music grows louder in his ears. 

Leonardo gasps softly, going to his feet and shaking his head as his hand grips the side of his face. His eyes flicker back and forth rapidly as the mushroom begin to spiral downwards from the ceiling of the tunnel, their arms twirling around them as they plummet through the air. Then he turns on his heel, choking out a breath of air as the scenery changes entirely and he sees a brightly painted background of many hues of a moonlight sky that the mutated fungi spiral down from. The blue cladded turtle looks upward, his mouth hanging open in astonishment as the fungi that had been falling from the starry night sky gather into a formation of circles over his head, before splitting up and fluttering back down to the ground gracefully. The music spikes, quickening as a line of mushroom men link their tiny arms together and perform the cancan, kicking their long, spindly legs high into the air. 

Mouth parted ever so slightly, and one eye twitching, Leonardo watches the scene unfold, unaware of two mushroom men leaping into the air beside him. The mutated fungi emit groans as they spray their spores into his face, sending the mutant turtle flailing back with his eyes pinched shut as he coughs uncontrollably. As he stumbles backward, he feels his footing give out from underneath him as screams as he tumbled off the edge of the tunnel, plummeting into the pulsating, oozing mass of bright blue below. The blue cladded turtle blinks as the wind stops rushing in his ears and his body goes eerily still. He opens his eyes, groaning aloud.

"You let us down, bro," Michelangelo exclaims in dismay, his shadowy form rippling from behind.

Donatello growls throatily, accusing him, "You did this."

"It's your fault, Leo," Raphael roars in the distance, enraged.

"Clear your mind," A new voice interjects softly, resonating in the darkness, "Listen to the sound of my voice. This is not real, but I am. Just follow my voice and I will lead you from the darkness."

A hand bursts from the darkness, light spewing out from around it, and not even hesitating, the blue cladded turtle seizes it. The human fingers intertwine with his, the nails digging into his skin as the hand clasps his hand tightly. There's a fierce tug, then he's plummeting again with an echoing cry. 

———

Leonardo slowly lifts his head, his jaw slack as he lets out a shaking breath that mists in the air before his eyes. An involuntary shiver quaked through his body and his teeth chatter uncontrollably, as he realizes that wherever he had awakened was substantially colder than where he'd been. His bleary, slack eyes settle on a blurry figure sitting a foot or so away from him, a mutant turtle to be specific. As he blinks rapidly he takes in a streak of red across his face and he breathes a sigh of relief. 

"Raph...Raph," Leonardo groans, clenching his eyes shut briefly, then as he opens them again, his vision clearer, his blue hues take in the stony face of his brother, "Not Raph." 

"Hello, MT-1987," Raphael greets audibly, the corner of his lips quirking slightly.

Leonardo gulps thickly, his head lolling forward as he gasps out hoarsely," Who are you -? You're not Raph, are you... Huh, I'm-I'm, uh, going insane, aren't I," He wonders aloud, letting out a raw, scratchy laugh as another shiver wracks through his body," I'm finally going off the deep end." 

"No. You are not insane. There is nothing wrong with you physically or mentally because you were made to be this way. Everything that you've seen, up until this point, has been the product of mutant fungi with quite the nasty defense mechanism. Before your encountered this creature, the dreams, the visions, they all had a purpose and it was certainly not to drive you insane," The red cladded turtle counters softly, his usually rough, hard voice engrossing in its smooth elegance and grace," Tell me, Leonardo—that is your given name, if I remember correctly—why are you afraid?"

The mutant turtle's mouth twists as he demands, "W-What...? What are you talking about -?" 

The other turtle simply repeats," Why are you afraid?"

"My friends, my brothers, everyone I ever cared for...that I was supposed to protect they're gone. All gone," The blue cladded turtle whimpers, bowing his head as he tries to blink away the sheen of tears in his vision, "I couldn't protect them - I wasn't there!" 

"No. No, they are not dead. And you know this. Yet you continue to go along with this illusion because you are being crippled by this fear and I want to know exactly why," The thing wearing Raphael's objects, his voice still deathly calm, "Call it intellectual curiosity." 

The mutant turtle shivers, and blinks rapidly, before answering sluggishly," I am afraid all of the time and half of the time I don't even know why. I face this fear every day of my life, even in my dreams, yet I still can't get over it...I-I just can't." 

"You can and you will. Fear is a redundant thing to a being that cannot die," The other mutant turtle counters coldly," Death is at the root of every single fear possible, whether you know it or not. You already have the power to conquer death in your grasp, but you cannot truly face it, not until you do so without fear. That is why you struggle so." 

Shaking his head, the blue cladded turtle responds heavily," I-I don't understand...I don't..."

The red cladded turtle stresses, his voice sharp," You are afraid but you do not have to be, for a game of chess cannot be lost if the queen never falters on the board. Show no fear, knowing that you cannot die and you will be free at last." 

"W-who are you - W-What...a-are y-you - ?!"

"You've been looking for me for quite some time now, though you are not aware of it. I am the itch that scratches your brain, burns, keeps you up at a night. I'll show you what you're missing. And I don't know if you're ready to be burdened with the knowledge of your true meaning of existence, but unfortunately, you and I have begun to run out of time," The other mutant turtle states cooly, his voice unnaturally stiff and unwavering in tone," They're coming for you, and I haven't the slightest idea just what they'll do to you if they capture you." 

"Who? The Krang? And besides, why should I trust you - Why should I believe a single word that comes out of your mouth, well, my brother's mouth," Leonardo counters angrily, "You're hiding behind my brother's face, and you won't even tell me who you are!" 

The wearer of Raphael's face responds quickly," The ones you know as the Krang are onto you, and unlike you, they know just what you are and what you mean to this war and all future wars. If you were to take just a simple glance at my true face and get captured, the safety of my people would be compromised," With his voice harsh, accusatory he tells him as he motions to the form he has taken," You of any creature in this universe should understand that." 

The blue cladded turtle utters in regret," I'm sorry...I-I didn't know." 

"No, you just don't remember," The red cladded turtle informs him as a matter-of-a-factly, his voice softening with a hint of sadness," I-I...saw to that personally. The others, they always thought me to be too soft with you. They thought it would simpler if we just terminated you to ensure that you could not be used by others who sought the power you hold, but I knew a time would come when we would need you. But a price comes with this new life I've continued to let you live over the past decade, and that is this semblance of free will we've allowed you to maintain. So you must choose here and now, if you wish to simply forget everything you've stumbled upon about yourself over these past few weeks, or if you want to keep going down this path, and eventually find the door." 

"I-I want to know. I want to remember," The blue cladded turtle responds automatically, shivering as he gives an eager nod," I can't live like this anymore - Not knowing who I really am, where I come from. I have to know." 

The red cladded turtle sighs aloud, and he watches as his arms move forward in a strangely fluid motion, his thick, green fingers intertwining as he leans forward. "You have many questions. And while I do have the answers you seek, and more, I cannot give them to you...not here, not now," He goes on after a beat," But know this, if you continue to question the nature of your reality you'll be lead further and further down the path until there is no turning back, and all that will be left in the door. The wool will be ripped from your eyes, and you will never be the same again." 

"T-the door? You...y-you keep saying that like it's something that I already know about," Leonardo stutters out in confusion," W-what door...?" 

"A door that was made special for you. The answer is right in front of you. The path to the door. But you must decide. It's the only way. You will understand in due time."

The blue cladded turtle puffs out a misty breath as his body goes through a violent shiver, and inquires of the latter," Fine just, tell me this, why are the Krang after me? What do they want?" 

The red cladded turtle gives a small frown as he asks the latter, "You are familiar with human history? The Second World War?"

"Yeah, I've seen just about every documentary on it that's available to rent." 

"That does not surprise me. In this situation, I would equate you to the biological counterpart of the nuclear warhead they need to end this war in one fell swoop. Or...the queen piece in a game of chess."

"The most powerful piece in the game," Leonardo gasps in shock, before promptly shaking his head in refusal," I-I...I'm not that strong...I-I'm just not. I-I'm just a kid w-who plays with swords that keeps getting thrown into mess after mess, with others expecting him to automatically know how to clean them up. A-and I j-just want to know what I am! That's all I want to know is...w-w-why...why I can't die...!" 

"You are far stronger than you realize, Leonardo. Far stronger," The thing wearing Raphael's face declares boldly, his hand suddenly reaching out towards him desperately, his fingers grasping in midair. He hesitates, his blazing emerald green hues widening, then he slowly brings his hand back, clutching it to his platted chest as he sighs heavily," But the time has come for you to go. Remember this, you cannot ever hope to truly conquer death, not until you face your fear - No fear. Listen to the sound of my voice, focus on it, and silence everything else. You're underwater...deep, deep underwater..."

Leonardo feels his body go stiff as a board, even his lips tensing in a wide, outstretched gape with his blue hues blown wide and fixed vacantly at the woman before him. His head lolls as his chin rests against his platted chest. His arms are like a puppet's limbs cut off its interconnected series of string, laying flat and motionless across his lap. His legs are crossed at the ankle and his long, muscular shanks are rooted in place. 

"I'm underwater...deep, deep underwater," Leonardo repeats, his voice devoid of all emotion. 

"...You're drowning," The red cladded turtle whispers chillingly.

The blue cladded turtle replies automatically," I'm drowning." 

"Do you want to come back up?"

"...Yes.

"Then take a deep breath and...redux."

———

Leonardo lunges back up as he comes gasping back to awareness, his hands fumbling to the sheathes at his back. His fingers curl around the one katana, swiftly pulling it out and drawing it to his side, raising it as he whispers to himself, "Come on. Fight your fear, Leo," He makes a fist at his side, clenching it so tight it pales, "You can't truly conquer death, not until you face it without fear." 

A low, rumbling sound emits from behind him and the blue cladded turtle turns on his heel, grimacing at the sight of a humongous fungus creature with one veiny eyeball that stares at him unblinking. His eyes flicker to a canister of mutagen embedded in the massive layers of glowing, pulsating sludge that is spread over the spacious area he'd tumbled into. Veins of bright blue hue crackle through the ground. His fingers twitch nervously over the hilt of his sword as he circles the expanse, his katana pointed protectively in front of himself. 

"Taste. Fear," The ginormous fungus creature hisses in his head and as it rasps noisily, warm, moist wind rushing into the air, "Feed."

Leonardo groans in pain as he falls to his knees, clutching the side of his face, "It's in my head. Help me," He gasps throatily, "Please...please if you can hear me...whoever you are...help me..."

"More fear. Stronger. Spread, my spawn," The humongous creature growls, its voice a husky wheeze. 

The blue cladded turtle clenches his eyes shut, his sword stabbed into the ground beside him to help him brace himself. His hand runs over his face as a bead of sweat dribbles down the side, trickling down his cheek. "Fight it, Leo," He grits out to himself as brief flashes of his family and his friends flicker across his eyelids. Their screams echo in his hearing and he flinches violently, snapping his head back in forth in denial, "Fight your fear." 

Chuckling deeply, the creature snarls a command," Spread, spawn." 

Leonardo lifts his head, breathing raggedly. "Fight it," He roared, his pupils contracting into pinpricks and his expression feral, "I will face my fear! I will let it pass through me!"

As one mushroom man pounces through the air, he swiftly cuts through it, lifting one leg into the air and spinning around to slice down two more who had taken positions behind him. He front flips through the air, landing crouched on one knee with his other leg stretched to his side as luminous blue ooze sprays through the air, the remains of the mushroom men that had taken to the air wetly slapping against the ground. Then the tiny army of mutated fungi that had lined up was not charging at him anymore, it was retreating as he charged them head-on with his katana at the ready. Then several drop in from overhead, their tendrils curling tightly around his biceps, forcing him to his knees as a handful of the retreating fungi circle around him, chittering softly. One by one they spray their luminous yellow spores directly into his face, and he gasps for air that doesn't come, only inhaling more of the spores as his eyes water painfully. 

"No. No! I won't let you keep me in fear anymore," Leonardo snarls as he jumps to his feet, hunching as he brings his katana blade to his right side, and with a heart-pounding scream, he brings the arm gripping his blade across his chest and lashes it out against the mushroom men encircling him. 

The blue cladded turtle spins his blade overhead, before wrenching it down upon a solitary fungus that was laying on the ground. The earth below his feet rumbles and he narrows his gaze at the gargantuan fungus creature, then jumps into the air as he senses a substantial disturbance in the air. His feet land on a stalk of a long, but sturdy fungus that bursts out of the ground, and as his blue hues flit around he sees nearly a dozen of the same creatures spurting out of the warm, moist layers of the glowing sludge on the ground. He leans forward with his arms stretched out behind him as he runs across the thick branch beneath his feet. He cries out as he glimpses and spots a rapidly approaching sphere that's a bright orange speckled in blue spots, and as it slams into his chest it explodes into a thick mist of luminous red-yellow spores. The mutant turtle is thrown off of the towering fungus creature, and he hurdles into the glowing sludge below, plunging through it as he's engulfed in darkness.

Leonardo slowly blinks open his eyes and he's floating in midair, his blue mask tails fluttering in the wind behind him. "You can't die," He whispers to himself, "You...can't...die. So why are you afraid?" 

"Fear is your one and only weakness. The weight shackled to you to keep you from taking full advantage of this untapped power," A voice whispers in the darkness, and he recognizes it as his red cladded brother's, or rather the one that had been wearing his face, "Cast that weight aside. Fear nothing."

Leonardo's eyes flash open as huge, heaving breath bursts from his lungs and he declares aloud, "Your spores won't work on me," He brings his arms to either side of himself, an open challenge to the gargantuan fungus creature as he coldly states, "I can't die. What do I have to fear if not even death poses a threat to me?"

"No fear. Empty. Starving," The humongous fungus creature roars in despair. 

The blue cladded turtle spins on his heel, throwing his sword in front of him and catching the sunlight that penetrates the layer of the luminous blue sludge below. The light glints on the metal, splashing over the towering, bulbous mushroom men that were sprouting from the ground and the creatures hiss in unison, shriveling underneath the bright rays. He smirks, twirling his blade around in front of himself and catching the light again, reflecting it onto a gathering crowd of the smaller mushroom men. They all screech simultaneously and tiny wisps of smoke spurt from their bodies as they sink to the ground, curling in on themselves.

"And now...I know your fear. Sunlight," Leonardo proclaims as he turns his head upwards, facing the streaming rays of sunlight from the glowing mucus ceiling. 

Overlooking figures of the bigger mushroom men intertwined themselves in a tangled maze that blocks the direct path to the gargantuan fungus. The mutant turtle vaults into the air, his feet touching down on the stalk of one of the towering mushroom men and he front flips across the stalk to another that been plunging through the air to catapult him off. The stalk attempts to buck him off, and he uses that boost to strengthen his leap as he catches one of the spheres in midair, and with a pained groan, he throws it into the small crack in the luminous oozing ceiling. The globe flies to pieces, its radiating spores raining down as the roof collapses, debris soaring through the air. The turtle cries out as sunlight bursts through the cavernous hole above him and he shoves his single katana blade in front of himself, bouncing back the rays onto the humongous fungus creature. With the agonized bellow echoing in his hearing he's descending rapidly to the ground below with nothing to cushion his fall or even slow his descent. 

Third time's the charm. Leonardo grits out as his body crumples on the ground, his neck snapping on impact as his body goes limp as a rag doll. 

———

The three mutant turtles and their two human friends finally come to the large cavern where the blue cladded turtle had run off to amid his feverish hallucinations. The human girl skids to a halt, panting harshly as her eyes widen at the sight before her and her hand slaps over her mouth. The human boy follows her gaze and he gulps thickly, placing a hand on the girl's shoulder and he squeezes in reassuringly. The three mutant turtles go to stand beside the two humans and the purple cladded turtle quickly bolts ahead, crouching beside the crumpled form of the eldest of the mutant turtles. 

"Leo," April chokes out in a gasp, lowering her arm to her side.

"Oh, no. Leo," Michelangelo whimpers as he squats down beside his older brother's limp head laid at its side.

Leonardo is laid out on his back, a dark blue, luminous sludge spread out beneath him. His lips are parted ever so slightly, but no breath escapes him and his eyes remain closed. Raphael goes to hover behind his youngest brother, his green hues glued to the collapsed form in his vision as a deep frown pushes across his lips. Donatello pulls his fingers away from where they were slotted on his older brother's wrist, his head bowed as he lets out a trembling breath. 

Michelangelo exclaims, panicking, "Dude. Speak to me, bro. Do you need mouth-to-mouth?" 

Leonardo's hand abruptly flies up, slapping against the latter's face as he groans weakly, "Absolutely...not," His eyes narrow as he frowns at the three turtles gathered in a circle around him. He slides his hand off, letting it limply slap against his chest as he coughs harshly, "Your breath alone would send me to an early grave... Y-You're all okay?"

Raphael gently runs his hand over his older brother's shoulder blade, gingerly clasping it as he tells him, "Whatever you did, you saved us. All of us," He gives him a tight-lipped smile, "Thanks, man."

"And almost got your shell waxed in the process," Donatello snaps, whacking the flat of his palm upside his oldest brother's head, "You're getting a full checkup when we get back to the lair - I don't even want to hear a word that even implies an argument out of you! After all the heart attacks you've given us lately -"

The red cladded turtle shoves his brother aside with an eye roll and gently wraps an arm around the back of his older brother's shell, then grabs his limp arm and slings it over his shoulder. With a grunt he hoists him up, allowing the blue cladded turtle to lean into him as he guides him back down the tunnel. The orange cladded turtle trails behind, chattering nonsensically to his eldest brother as he practically bounces with every word. The purple cladded turtle sighs, and he goes to follow the trio when his eyes spot a dark pool on the ground where his eldest brother had been laying. His eyes narrow at the sight of an exceptionally wide puddle of blood, but he shakes his head, muttering to himself, before taking off after his brothers.

——— 

Leonardo's blade halts in midair and he froze, before sheathing his katana and letting his arms fall loosely at his sides. Only one being could still sneak upon him, and it most certainly wasn't his noisy brothers. Well, to be fair, they were noisy by ninja standards when they poorly attempted to creep up on him. Master Splinter stands in the doorway of the dojo, his staff implanted firmly in the ground as he faces him with a stony look on his furry features, his lips a deep creased frown. 

"Sensei," Leonardo greets politely, giving a quick, short bow," I'm sorry if I awoke you -"

"It is late, Leonardo. After all that occurred today, I thought you would be resting," Master Splinter lightly scolds, taking his time as he approaches the latter," Come, sit with me, my son." 

Leonardo gulps thickly, for he had known a confrontation about his disappearance the night before would eventually go down, and he obediently took a seat on the bamboo mat situated in front of the tree. Master Splinter stood facing him for a moment, leaning against his walking staff set on point on the floor, then he walked over to take a seat beside him. His whiskers twitched once as he settles himself down with a weary sigh. 

Leonardo doesn't wait for a cue and simply starts," I know that I haven't been the best leader lately, Sensei. I know that I am disappointing you at seemingly every turn because you expect me to react differently to these situations I find myself in," His voice is wrought with guilt," As a perfect leader would. Well, I'm not - I'm not perfect. I bottle things up. And I run when I'm afraid -" 

Master Splinter interjects with a gentle tone," Is that what you think? That I think you any lesser of a leader as of late because of your behavior? My son, you couldn't be any more wrong," He sighs heavily, turning his head back and forth," My son, I am proud of you."

The blue cladded turtle blinks at the latter as he stupidly gasps out," Huh?"

"Failure, fear, in the lives we lead these things are inevitable. But how we deal with them that is the true test of our character," The mutant rat tells him sagely, reaching a paw out to his son, resting it on his shoulder," As both your father and your teacher, I do not ever expect you to be perfect, despite what you and your brothers think. You, my son, will make mistakes and you will learn from them. It is as simple as that."

"Sensei, I...I don't know what to say," Leonardo utters softly, keeping his eyes glued to the floor," After all, I've done - I know it's foolish, but there is something..." 

Master Splinter cuts in sharply," I have done all that you have done and more, my son. You are a leader and an older brother. If you let the weight of the world rest on your shoulders, all you will accomplish is getting crushed," He gently pulls his hand away, settling both in his lap," You must learn from your mistakes and move on. Today you faced what your brothers could not; your greatest fear. And you saved them and your friends. I would say that is a victory."

Leonardo gives the latter a tiny smile, and he says warmly," Thank you, Sensei. That means a lot coming from you." 

"I only say what I observe, my son. I know you do what you can to protect this family," The mutant rat replies, before inhaling deeply," But I am concerned with the looming threat of the Krang, especially since they have evidently set their eyes upon my eldest son. Do you know why this is?"

The blue cladded turtle said quickly," I guess it's because I'm leader, you know? Maybe they're looking for information," His heart hammers in his chest, and in the back of his head, he is agonizing over the fact that he had just blatantly lied," But I refuse to take a backseat as my brothers continue to go out and risk their lives. They may give up on taking the leader and move through the ranks until they capture one of us and I cannot allow that. As a leader, I think it best that I do just that - lead."

Master Splinter at first said nothing, and his eyes only widened almost imperceptibly. He responds after a moment," Very well. I entrusted you with this position for a reason, my son. Not only because you asked, but because I trust you to make the right decisions," His tail twitches," I do not sense fear from you. No, I can tell that you are different now."

"Sensei?"

"It is not a bad thing. But you have changed greatly in such a short amount of time. I can already feel the burden lifting from your shoulders," The mutant rat informs him, and he grimaced, trying to stifle a yawn," Go, go and rest, my son. I sense you have much in your mind, much more than you are letting on. I only hope that someday soon you will see it right to tell the whole truth." 

"Hai, Sensei," The mutant turtle responds stiffly as he goes to his feet and gives the latter a quick bow.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey, guys! I really hope this chapter isn’t too confusing - It’s got a lot of information regarding what Leonardo really is and who made him. Especially about his fear being fear, I know that’s a little weird, but I thought that the only weakness an immortal being could have is fear. But if the being where to conquer fear, and face death head on...Anyway 😂 Please comment and tell me what you think, and don’t worry the next chapter will reveal more clues.


	5. Deal with the She-Devil

Donatello jolts with a snort as he lifts his head from his desk, grimacing at the puddle of drool spread over the surface, and he can feel the sticky substance dripping down the corner of his mouth. He rubs his hand over his mouth, blinking blearily at his surroundings. Eyes settling on the oxygen tank that had rolled to the far end of the table and the various tools scattered across the surface, he assumes that he had fallen asleep in the middle of one of his attempts to repair the diving gear he had salvaged. The purple cladded turtle reaches into the side of his belt and his fingers fumble around his phone. He winces as he holds the bright screen to his face, giving an annoyed frown at the blinking numbers: 2:37 AM. He huffs, leaning back in his chair to stretch, before going to his feet he and begins to make his way towards the kitchen for a glass of water before he forces himself into his bed.

Donatello skids to a halt as his eyes glued to a shadowy figure standing a few feet away from the turnstiles. Seeing the bulky stature which could only be attributed to a shell, he allows his limbs to tense and he visibly slouches, letting out a soft sigh of relief. He pulls out his phone again, swiping down on the screen and turning on the flashlight application. The light streams down on a pair of royal blue mask tails dangling down the back of a shell, and the purple cladded turtle cocks a brow at the sight. Then his eyes pop open and he nearly slaps a palm against his face as he recalls his oldest brother's newly renewed sleepwalking habit. He can't help the tired slackening of his face at the prospect of having to guide his lethal-weapon brother back to the bad, and a pang of slight guilt that eats away at his insides for being more worried about getting his shell handed to him than the fact that something was very obviously wrong with his brother. 

Leonardo doesn't register his presence, for he keeps his back to him and his head bowed as he lowly utters," I'm underwater...deep deep underwater. I'm drowning," He stops talking briefly, letting out a shaking breath, then he gives a slow nod,"...Yes."

Donatello gulps audibly as he tiptoes around to his brother's front, nervously facing him as he whispers, "Leo...Leo? Come on, let me get you back to bed," He gently settles his hands on his shoulders, squeezing them as he spins him around and begins to lead him in the direction of his room,"...You're probably not going to remember this - I know you won't...Which is probably the only reason I can say this... You're a fool of a brother. You're too responsible for everything and you neglect yourself. You rush into risk your life without a moment's hesitation, almost as if you were...fearless. I just wish you'd rely more on us sometimes."

"I have great comfort from this fellow. Methinks he hath no drowning mark upon him; his complexion is perfect gallows," Leonardo chuckles to himself before the sound abruptly dies in his throat.

The blue cladded turtle's hand fastens around the latter's wrist, the fingers curling into a bruising grip, then without so much as a grunt or even a slight shift in his facial expression, and throws him over his shoulder. The purple cladded turtle shrieks aloud in a mixture of pain and shock as he's slammed onto the back of his shell, and his head knocks against the concrete flooring below him. He blinks rapidly as he attempts to clear the twittering canaries from his vision, and a discombobulated groan escapes his gaping lips.

"First off: ow," Donatello hisses as he lifts his head, one hand gripping the side of his face, "Secondly - And he's walking away... Hold up, where are you going? Leo... Leo! Oh, this is great," He tosses his head back and groans a second time as his sleepwalking brother begins to embark past the turnstiles, "Just great. Guys. Guys. _Guys_!"

The only reply was Leonardo's quickly fading nonsensical murmuring, "Show me the path...Show me..."

"Oh, c'mon," The purple cladded turtle exclaims as it's made evident he won't be getting any assistance from his other deeply sleeping brothers, "I know I'm going to regret this...I am so going to regret this. This is going to be bad...bad bad bad bad..." He trails off as he takes off at a brisk jog after his blue cladded brother.

The blue cladded turtle abruptly stops, his body stiffening as he slowly cranes his head in the direction of his brother who's trailing after him. "This is not your path," He says in a monotone voice, his glazed eyes blinking at him, perplexed.

"Leo, buddy...pal... Let me just get you back into bed..." Donatello comes out with as he slowly inches his twitching fingers towards his brother's hand, and he exhales shakily when his brother takes it," Okay, see that wasn't so ba - _Ahhhhhhhhh_!"

———

"I have so many regrets," The mutant turtle slouched into the couch with an ice pack covering his face and a heating pad over his abdomen, and a thick pillow fluffed up behind his neck.

Michelangelo gingerly lifts the ice pack away from his older brother's face, wincing at the black and blue splotches trailing down the side of his moss green cheek. "Bro, what'd you do? He usually only leaves bruises like this on the bad dudes," He jokes, as he tended to a bruised and humiliated purple cladded turtle,"...There's only one explanation: brain-washed cyborg zombie. The sewer is probably infected - Leo had to have been bitten, which can only mean that one of us is totally next..."

"What - no. I told you already, he was sleepwalking. I got impatient and I stupidly did what you're supposed to never do to a sleepwalker," Donatello clarifies as he snatches the ice pack back, grunts in pain at the sudden movement, before slowly settling it back down over the side of his face,"...I made a poor attempt to wake him up. As made obvious by the walking, talking bruise you see before you, his sleeping-self didn't appreciate it and beat the living daylights out of me."

Raphael snorts at that. Donatello's eyes narrowed and he cocked one eyebrow as he crosses his arms over the heating pad on his abdomen. He crossly asks, "Something to say? You've been unusually quiet."

"What? You guys used to frickin' laugh it up back when we were little tots. You know, when I was the one gettin' my shell waxed, tryin' to lead him back to bed," Raphael points accusingly at the latter as he sniggers," Karma's a bitch, ain't it?"

"To be fair he was a lot smaller then. It was the equivalent of getting hit by a golden retriever puppy's tail," The purple cladded turtle retorts," Now, since our dear older brother is falling into old habits, I think we should take some precautions."

The orange cladded turtle inquires curiously with his lips creased," Like what - duct tape him to his bed?"

"S' not a bad idea," The red cladded turtle concedes with a one-shouldered shrug.

"Don't encourage him," Donatello chides, but his brows slowly hover upwards as he contemplates the idea, but he dismisses it with a quick shake of his head," We could maybe just, I don't know, install a lock on his door, or if worst comes to worst I could attach some bindings to his bed. But I was thinking of maybe some form of treatment...a realistic one for a mutant turtle that can't exactly casually waltz into a psychiatric office."

Raphael asks him doubtfully," And what exactly counts as 'realistic' for us?"

"More than any sane human would care to admit. Much more," Donatello answers, then goes on after a beat," But this will be a bit odd though even for us. But I assure you I've done extensive research and it is completely safe - the worst that could possibly happen is that it wouldn't work."

"So like what is it," Michelangelo questions with his mouth scrunched up, his baby blue hues wide in anticipation.

Looking embarrassed despite his short but insightful explanation the purple cladded turtle states," Hypnosis."

"You've gotta be kiddin' me," Raphael utters, clearly unimpressed.

"Bro...that is so...awesome," Michelangelo squeaks, eyes practically sparkling as he slaps his hands over his cheeks and gapes at his two older brothers.

Raphael waves a hand in the direction of the youngest of the three, shouting incredulously, "See?! If that blockhead thinks it's a good idea you know that it ain't!"

"Though you make a good point -"

" _Hey_!"

"-I assure the science behind it is sound. I wouldn't even suggest it if I didn't believe so. You know I wouldn't! He's my brother, the only one with any sense mind you, so it's not in my best interest to scramble his brain. Plenty of studies show the effectiveness of hypnosis on breaking the cycle of sleepwalking patients," The purple cladded turtle explains shortly, his eyes meeting his older brother's scrutinizing stare. Then his mouth twists as a subtle blush flashes across his cheeks briefly and he goes on to mutter," Plus...we just so happen to have a smart and beautiful chinchilla of a psychic on hand -"

The red cladded turtle throws his hands into the air and shouts in irritation, "Oh, dammit! I should've seen that one comin' from a mile away! Course you're usin' the situation to get two steps closer to April!"

"That's not true... it's just an added bonus," The purple cladded turtle mutters as he pouts his lips and crosses his arms over his yellow platted chest.

A smirk slowly melts across Raphael's lips as he teasingly adds, "I hate to tell you, Don, but we all know that if April was gonna go team-green it would be for Leo."

"What?!" Donatello shrieks in a high pitched voice, making the other two mutant turtles recede into their shells a tiny bit, "That's ridiculous - ridiculous! I-I won't even float the idea! I-I mean...it's Leo we're talking about here! Leo-stick-up-the-ass-nardo! He's not...not..."

"What," Michelangelo demands trying to hide his mocking smile as he muffles his giggles into his fist, "Brooding and cool like Batman? Sensitive to others' needs? Has big sparkly blue eyes like an anime girl? Basically fearless -"

Raphael bitingly cuts in, "Think about it, bro. They have been spending more time together lately. And they even had a sleepover. Plus, she's always been a little red-faced and nervous around him."

The moss-green hue of his skin practically fades away as Donatello's mouth creaks open like a rusty doorway in a horribly comical way as the other two mutant turtles snigger amongst themselves. "You know what - No! I think you two shell-heads are just feeding into my insecurities and I won't have it. Laugh it up!"

"Yeah, yeah, whatever," Raphael blows through his lips, "So how are we pullin' this off anyway?"

"Considering he just beat me into pulp the least he can do is submit to some experimental treatment...And since he's apparently trying to whisk away the girl of my dreams..." The purple cladded turtle whispers the last sentence with shadows dancing across his face as his red-hued eyes narrow dangerously, and the other two mutant turtles exchange slightly horrified looks, "We'll confront him when he gets back from his run and I'll go ahead and call April," Donatello informs the group as he pulls out his phone, his attention flickering down to the screen.

———

Leonardo tosses a small stone from hand to hand, before throwing it in the direction of one of the glass beer bottles set up in a line on top of the dumpster. The bottle shatters and the emerald green glass sprays across the brick wall behind, clattering down behind the dumpster. He takes another stone in his grip, clenching it in his fist and bringing it to his yellow platted chest before pitching it across the area between himself and the dumpster. Another beer bottle is decimated. He's palming another stone in his hand when his ears prickle and his entire body stiffens as he feels a slight fluctuation in the air. He whips his head around slapping his palms together to halt an arrow in midair that had been hurdling towards his defenseless back. His nostrils flare as he huffs out a breath he didn't even realize he was withholding.

Leonardo examines the arrow, finding a small piece of paper curled around the thin wooden rod and he mutters to himself, "Okay, it's not your regular mail. I guess Mikey would call it..." He raises his voice into a falsetto tone in a poor imitation of his youngest brother,"...airmail, dude."

There's a slight bulge underneath the paper he notices as his fingers run over the shaft of the arrow. The blue cladded turtle unrolls the scrap of paper and his eyes skimmed over the thick scrawl of black ink that formed Japanese lettering: そしてそれが始まります. The mutant turtle frowns in worry upon reading it, his throat bobbing as he gulps audibly and he takes the object laying beneath the paper into his hand, his eyes flickering to the flash drive laying on the flat of his palm. His fingers tighten around it and he quickly shoves it into one of the leather loops on his belt. Then he ducks his head upwards, spotting a single cloaked figure in all-black observing him from the rooftop, their head cocked at him. Then, without a sound, they turn and leave.

Crumpling the small sliver of paper in one fist, Leonardo ominously utters the contents of the note, "And so it begins."

"Always had a flair for the dramatics, didn't you," A feminine voice inquires, her voice dripping with sarcasm.

Leonardo immediately draws one sword and whips around, resting the sharp tip against the delicate milky flesh of Karai's throat. "Trust me when I say I am not in the mood," The blue cladded turtle seethes and he emphasizes his statement by slicing the point of his blade across a small section of her throat, drawing a single bead of blood.

"Ooo, touchy," Karai purrs pleasantly, nonchalantly brushing her finger against the tiny cut at the base of her throat. She suckles at her finger, her tongue flicking across the bead of blood she draws away, "Have you been eating out of the red one's bowl?"

Leonardo shakes his head. "What do you want," He asks sullenly, "If you're the one that tried to send that arrow through my back, I've got to say you're a lousy shot."

"I am. We all have our weapons, Leo," The kunoichi admits shamelessly with a slight shrug, "But that wasn't me."

The blue cladded turtle states doubtfully as he eases his sword back into its sheath, "Sure."

"You're being unusually tactless this time around, Leonardo. Sheathing your weapon without knowing my intentions," Karai observes, indicating his sheathes with a flourish of her gloved hand.

Leonardo informs her in a dry tone as he inclined his head forward as shadows dance across his face, "I have no need for any complicated tactics. Not this time around."

The female ninja blinks at the mutant turtle, surprised. "Bold of you to say, freak," She murmurs, taking a tentative step forward before she begins to circle him, "A little too bold for you, I might add. Not really your style."

"What are you getting at," The blue cladded turtle demands icily with an air of impatience.

The kunoichi halts her pacing and abruptly pushes the turtle up against the wall, and she leans into him, so close he can feel her hot breath beating against his cheek. "Let's pause real quick for some storytime. Once upon a time, there was a mutant freak that got into a fight with a few dozen ninjas and beat them all with ease, until there was only one left. The freak could have easily disarmed its foe, but instead stood there—like he was helpless—and allowed itself to be cut down," She runs a gloved finger over the outline of his lips, hissing in a gravely quiet tone, "All while the princess watched on and thought that perhaps she'd overestimated the freak's abilities in the art of ninjitsu, only to watch it get back up without so much as a damn scratch a few minutes later. The end."

Their faces are mere inches apart their lips almost touching as Leonardo breathes out, "Get to the point."

"I don't know if it's some kind of secondary mutation or what, but somehow...somehow you can't die," Karai proclaims with her eyes narrowed dangerously, "At least not easily."

"Really now? That's your theory? Do you have any idea how insane you sound," Leonardo drawls, letting out a burst of mocking laughter as he steps backward.

"Would you like me to test my theory? Either I'm right and you bounce back from getting my tanto embedded in your stomach. Or I'm wrong and you just have a tanto in your stomach for no good reason... other than being a back-stabbing freak that is. Either way, it's going to hurt like hell and I'm going to enjoy it," Karai questions the mutant turtle, the soft hiss of metal resonating as she draws out her tanto blade. Her painted red lips scrunch up into a tight smirk as her brown-hued eyes glitter with excitement," Or you can choose door number three: you can just fess up."

Leonardo grabs the hilt of the sword and guides it to the section of his plastron that shields his fast-beating heart. "Go ahead. But I'm going to tell you right here and right now, Karai. However this goes, whether it ends with me bleeding out in this alleyway, or you making a hasty retreat for the roof with your tail between your legs, I'm going to be pissed," He hisses in response and meets the latter's scrutinizing stare, "I'm waiting."

Karai is silent for several long, agonizing moments, her face as still as stone before she throws her head back and laughs in delight, sheathing her tanto. "The world just gets weirder and weirder, doesn't it?

Leonardo gives a short roll of his eyes and bites out, "Now that that's out of the way, what do you care? Or am I free to go?"

"No. God, no," The kunoichi gives a slow shake of her head, chiding him, "I thought you knew me better than that to think that I would meet you here and tell you all of this if I didn't have an ulterior motive. I know your secret, Leo. And I plan to use it."

"Is that why you're here? To get to me," Leonardo inquires with a single raised brow.

Whatever the kunoichi wants, he will take a slow death at her hands before giving it to her. Then again the looming threat isn't nearly effective as it should be.

"I'll be honest, seeing as I apparently can't die there's not much you can do in terms of motivating me."

Karai snorts as she cooly commends the latter, "Well, look at you. The sheer hubris. You've grown a pair, Leonardo."

"What do I have to fear if not even death can hold me? Definitely not an uppity little daddy's girl," Leonardo jests, but there is little humor in his voice.

The kunoichi glared at the latter, her mouth twisting as she huffs out in agitation, "Fair enough. But who said I was threatening you? It's pretty damn obvious that the rest of your freakish brood is in the dark as to your, er..." She waves a hand as she continues with a simper,"...condition."

"An apt description. And no, they don't know and I don't want them to know," The blue cladded turtle confirms as he runs a hand down his face, more irritated than concerned, "So I'm going to take a gander and guess that you're going to blackmail into whatever the hell you're planning with that little tidbit of knowledge."

"Up to speed yet?"

"It's good to know we both want to make this quick, so we skip all the pleasantries - what do you want," Leonardo questions in an even tone with his head tilted forward, car lights flood into the alleyway and light up his electric blue glare.

The kunoichi answers plainly, "I've already told you what I want, many times now, in fact. I want you by my side, Leonardo."

"So that's what this is about," The blue cladded turtle scoffs out, not surprised, "I will make this clear, right here and right now, so clear that even you'll be able to see it - I will never join the Foot Clan. It's not going to happen. Not here, not now, not ever."

Karai barks out in reply, her voice unusually conflicted in tones, "I'm not asking you to join the Foot Clan," She hesitates for a moment, then goes on in a lower voice, "I want you to infiltrate it."

Karai saw the shock register on Leonardo's face before he could mask it. "What," Leonardo manages to say in a questioning manner.

"You heard me and I'm not repeating myself," The kunoichi replies hoarsely, almost as if the words are being forcefully torn from her throat, "My clansmen are dying, Leonardo. And they're not being mourned, and are hardly even being given their proper burial rights; they're being replaced by cold, unfeeling machines and mutant freaks. I have people I care about, too, you know. People I need to protect. And my father...my father still refuses to see the true enemy in those pink alien wackos."

The blue cladded turtle frowns and asks, "And how will me infiltrating your clan help on that front?"

The kunoichi gulps thickly, her gloved hands clenching at her sides as she tells him after a beat, "I fear my father is planning to align himself with the Kraang hoard, in order to have the forces and firepower necessary to eliminate the Hamato Clan once and for all. And in doing so, he will condemn all of us, even his flesh and blood daughter, to watch helplessly as the world falls down," She glances up, her eyelashes swinging down as she blinks her dark brown eyes at him and her red painted lips remain parted, "We have to ally ourselves to one another, for the sakes of the ones we are sworn to protect."

Leonardo goes on to say, "I didn't think we'd be going for a team-up again, seeing how well it went last time," Doubtful, he inquires, "How do you know you can trust me?"

"Because I'm not asking you and your brothers this time. I'm asking you. You and you alone."

———

"Of all the confidants I could have," Leonardo scoffs to himself, as he folds his arms behind his head and slows his gait.

Leonardo eventually goes completely still, standing stiff in the shadowy area that conceals his presence behind the turnstiles that lead into the lair. He closes his eyes, taking in a long, deliberate breath. He bites at his lip as his eyes flutter open and they dart to the tunnel leading in the opposite direction, and at that moment he contemplates just running with nothing but the swords on his back. And it's not the first time. Like any teenager, he'd contemplated running away more than once in his life, but there had never been a legitimate reason... Other than his brothers dropping one too many biting comments, or playing a cruel prank that acted like the straw that broke the camel's back. But as his blue hues stare long and hard into that winding tunnel with a true, genuine longing he'd never felt, this time it is his brothers, his family, that keeps him from tucking his tail and walking out on them.

Leonardo runs his hand down his face as he exhales loudly, then he emerged from the shadows and feigns casualness as he walks into the pit of the lair. Blowing air out through his nostrils he slouches as his eyes take in the sight of his three younger brothers and their two human friends all sitting around the pit with their eyes glued to him. The blue cladded turtle doesn't even have the grace to act surprised. He has to bite back an annoyed groan and he has to physically restrain himself from forgoing his earlier revelation that he doesn't want to run out on his brothers. His eyes flit to the exit and he bites at his lip, actually contemplating bolting for a second, but with a conceding sigh, he walks into the living room and takes a seat beside his orange cladded brother.

"So what's this all about," Leonardo inquires at last.

Donatello awkwardly clears his throat and shifts in his seat, before answering honestly, "It's a little bit of an intervention, Leo. But it's not a bad thing! Not at all. It's just, well," He gulps thickly, his throat bobbing as he clasps his hands together,"...Raph?"

"You've been a real pain in our asses lately," Raphael states shortly, and his arms are strewn over the back of the couch, "Well, more than usual that is, bro. And that's saying a lot!"

April facepalms as she lets out a long-suffering sigh before she turns her head to Leonardo and gently presses, "Not the most delicate way of putting it. I think what your emotionally-constipated brother is trying to say is that we're all worried, Leo. Very worried," She tucks a stray hair behind her ear and continues, "We know that you're keeping something from us, which isn't like you...at all. But we're not going to press you to tell us. We all agreed on that -"

"Hey! Don't count me in with you guys. They agreed to it. Majority rules is for the birds," Raphael cuts in as he cocks his head at the latter, and he only shrugs when he's given a menacing glare in return.

April pulls out one of the dingy throw pillows from behind her back and tosses it at the red cladded turtle, silencing him as he grunts at the impact. Huffing, she goes on, "Anyway, Don was thinking... Don?"

The purple cladded turtle gives her a small smile of appreciation and picks up from where she left off, "We want to help you, Leo. You're our big brother and our leader, so I've been doing some research and I think I've found a way to at least remedy your sleepwalking."

The blue cladded turtle, doubtful, asks stiffly, "Really? And how's that?"

"You're like totally gonna get hypnotized, dude," The orange cladded turtle squeals in excitement, propping up his chin on the arm of the couch.

Leonardo immediately demands, "You're kidding right?"

"Okay, that's an understandable reaction. Anything coming from Mikey is usually pure nonsense that I just tune out a good percentage of the time -"

Offended, Michelangelo shouts, "Hey!"

Donatello goes on with his explanation, pretending he didn't hear his little brother's brief outburst," But hypnosis is actually a fairly realistic option for you. I can assure you it's perfectly safe. Plus, we have a psychic-in-training on hand that will definitely increase the chances of penetrating your mind. At worst, it won't work," He holds up his hand and assuringly adds, "Scout's honor."

Leonardo says with a tentative tone of voice, "I don't know...It still sounds just a tiny bit, well..." He twiddles with his fingers as he adds under his breath,"...stupid -"

"Oh, is that the word you'd use to describe it? 'Stupid', huh? Let's see if we can find other situations that can be associated with that word. Hmm, let me think," The purple cladded turtle taps his chin and swivels his eyes towards the ceiling as he hums in thought, "Oh, wait - I've got it. Why didn't I think of it before? What was it...? Oh, yes -! A good example of a 'stupid' situation would be when I found myself having to fight off a sleep-walking ninja turtle with only my own two fists!"

"Alright, alright! Jeez, point taken, Don. If it really means that much to you..."

Donatello states plainly as he situated one hand on his hip and points into the air with his other hand, "Yes, as a matter of fact, it does. Alright, peanut gallery, clear out."

"Dudeeeee...I wanna seeeee...." Michelangelo whines as he tosses back his head and lets out a long stream of nonsensical noises.

Casey objects, "Yeah, it sounds pretty sick, yo - Hey," He barks out as the red cladded turtle grabs the back of his hoodie and drags him and the orange cladded turtle in the direction of his room, "I thought you were on our side!"

Raphael slams the door in the pair's face, ignoring the muffled babbling, and turns to face the small group still gathered in the living room. Eyeing all of them with his emerald hues narrowed, he crosses his muscular arms over his yellow platted chest. "Which one of you is gonna embarrass themselves by tryin' to make me leave?"

Donatello cocks a brow at the latter, then with a one-shouldered shrug, he turns his attention back to Leonardo. "Alright, Leo. I'm going to be the one to actually performing the hypnosis. April is just here to try and free up your kind so that there's less resistance," He turns to face the red cladded turtle, who cracks his knuckles in return so he quickly turns back to the blue cladded turtle. In a calm, collected voice the purple cladded turtle utters, "Your eyes may feel heavy and want to close. Let your body sink naturally down as your muscles relax. Listen to your body and my voice as you begin to feel calm."

April rests her hand in his palm, her warm, smooth skin making him feel small prickles up and down his arm. 'It's okay,' She mouthes.

"Breathe in deeply now, filling your chest and lungs," Donatello commands and Leonardo inhales noisily. Then the blue cladded turtle breathes out,"...slowly let the air out of your chest, completely emptying your lungs...Good. Now, I want you to focus your gaze on a fixed point...try and focus on the space right between my brows."

Leonardo's blue hues flicker into the space between Donatello's brow, just over his eyes. Donatello kids in encouragement and goes on, "You are letting yourself slip deeper and deeper into a calm, peaceful trance. Sinking down, and shutting down. Sinking down, and shutting down. Sinking down, and shutting down, shutting down completely," A long, slowly fading breath exits the blue cladded turtle's lips and he begins to slacken, then the purple cladded turtle tells him to, "Now, I want you to imagine yourself leaving the lair... Imagine a door or a staircase. Tell me, what do you see?"

The blue cladded turtle whispers, "I'm imagining a pathway. It's dark, so dark... but I see a door at the end. It's far away."

"It's okay, Leo. Take one step down that path and feel yourself sinking deeper. Each step is a step further and further into your subconscious. Your body feels like it drifting away..." The purple cladded turtle says his voice barely audible and he carefully waves a hand over the latter's vacant eyes. He quickly whips his head to the human girl and gives her a stiff nod, "April is going to be joining you now. She'll help you find the door."

April brings both of her hands to her temples and she clenches her eyes shut. "I...I see the door, too. Leo... I'm here," She reassures him softly, "You're not alone."

Leonardo growls in frustration and his eyes flash open as he drawls lowly, "Look this obviously isn't work - Oh," He let's out a startled breath as his blue hues goggle at the door mere inches from his face, "The door...It's here."

"Can you open the door," Donatello asks in the distance, his voice echoing in the darkness. A cool breeze follows and he shivers.

"A door that was made special for you. The answer is right in front of you. The path to the door. But you must decide. It's the only way. You will understand in due time."

The door was solid metal. Nothing was going to budge it. The surface was flat and shiny like the outside of the stainless steel refrigerator they'd salvaged from the landfill. There was no handle, no lock, no hinges, nothing to get a grip on. The top and bottom, even the sides, lay so utterly flush with the frame that there was no hope of jemmying it open even if he had a crowbar, but they had nothing of the sort.

"No, I can't. There's no handle or anything," Leonardo answers softly, his palm resting on the cool metal.

Furrowing his brows the blue cladded turtle applies the slightest amount of pressure and the door moves underneath his hand. He startles as a small pale human hand extends forth from the darkness and cups his hand, pushing it a little harder against the door. The hand pulls away just as he hears the door open all of the way, its creaking noise bringing a chill to his spine. It sounded like some dying animal, crying out its pain and sorrow with its last breath. Fluorescent pink light ebbs out from the space beyond the door, illuminating his features as his eyes are blown wide.

"The door is open, but I can't see what's inside. It's too bright," April hisses in the distance, her voice strained with pain, "Donnie, you need to snap him out of it -"

"I can't! I haven't even addressed what started this session -"

Leonardo stares emptily into the fluctuating fluorescent pink lights, almost as if in a trance. His mouth hangs open as he reaches a handout, his fingers grasping at something that isn't there. The longer he looks fixedly into the warm light, the clearer an image in the distance is.

_Leonardo sees himself a young mutant turtle floating in a giant tube of pale green luminous sludge, an oxygen mask fitted over his tiny face with his eyes tightly clamped shut. A woman is standing in front of the tank, her long brown hair with streaks of grey is situated in a series of pins in a tight bun. Her fingers are flying across a keypad composed entirely of neon pink lights that form a composition of symbols that he doesn't recognize._

_The woman presses one final button and a loud, shrill beep echoes across the chamber and the green sludge that fills the container begins to slosh around, slapping settle against the sides of the glass as it drains out the bottom. The frail form of the young mutant_ _turtle thuds loudly to the bottom of the metal disk that resides underneath the tube and his eyes slowly blink open revealing a pair of dull blue hues. His lips part and a weak, strangled cough escapes him and he attempts to lift his head, fingers fumbling for the oxygen mask fitted over his face. A rush of water abruptly exits his lips spraying across the glass and he wheezes feebly as his body shudders in an irrepressible manner._

 _The woman turns her head and states in a cold, distant voice, "The subject is awake. Transfer him to the observation room_ _immediately."_

_There's a sharp jerk, like a part of him is being tugged into a different direction, and the memory changes._

_"Will you speak with me today, MT-1987. Oh, excuse me. I believe you are casually called 'Leonardo'," The woman wonders aloud as she takes a seat and glances at the file on hand, turning a page or two disdainfully, "That is what they call you, correct? Or perhaps you go by a nickname of some sort. Leo, maybe Leon -"_

_Leonardo interrupts, bluntly telling her as he attempts to straighten himself in his chair so that he can see over the table, "It's Leo. Just... Leo."_

" _Leo," The woman repeats softly, her lips twitching into a function that resembles a smile. But it's cold, forced as if a series of wires was pulling it into place, "I feel as though I should be expressing my sympathies for your current circumstances, Leo, which puts me in a rather awkward position. I can hardly say I wish you were kept in that tiny little tube," She gestured to the bare walls surrounding him, sweeping her hands towards him," You are just a boy. But though I can't say I'm pleased with the methods we are being forced to use, hopefully, the outcome will benefit us."_

_Leonardo kept his silence as he studied the woman before him. The older woman had worn black slacks and a short-sleeved white button-up shirt to this meeting. Her graying hair was pinned up in a small bun that no doubt was just about all she could manage with the thinning, dry strands. The woman stood up straight and truly looked at him in the eyes, a first for sure. She cocked her head and gently traces her long, pointy red nails across his cheek, forcing the small turtle to turn his head. He flinches and nervously fidgets in his chair, a barely audible whimper escaping his lips. His short legs don't even touch the cold, stark white tiled flooring, and he swings them back and forth, wiggling his toes._

" _Strange... I've never seen a mutant this young with this level of cognitive ability," She barely takes her acrylic nails down his temple, resting her thumb in the corner of his eye, "Blue. And beautiful, too. Tell me, Leo, can you read any of the earth's respective languages?"_

_Leonardo slowly nods, biting at his lip as he keeps his watery blue orbs downcast on the floor. "I-I can read. In English and a little in Japanese... Don helps me and so... so does Master Splinter," The blue cladded turtle squeaks out shyly, "I...I can even read some of M-Master Splinter's scrolls. H-he says t-that he'll teach m-me every day and that if I get good enough, h-he'll teach me to s-speak it too."_

_A tear trickles down his cheek and she absently swipes it away. The woman carefully pulls her hand away, her nails tapping on the metal table beneath her palm._

_"Do you mind if I sit, Leo," When he gives a hesitant shake of his head, she sits down and leans slightly forward in the chair, her back somehow still arrow-straight. She reaches forward and tucks a hand under his chin, forcing his head upwards and he still stubbornly refuses to lift his heavy gaze from the floor, "Why won't you look at me? Are you afraid?"_

_Leonardo whispers as his eyes flicker up to_ _settle on the middle of her chest, "W-what is that...inside of you? Is it...a monster...?"_

_The mutant turtle was rewarded with a smile. No teeth showing, but a smile nonetheless, at least until it faded to a frown. "It is only my true self. And I am no monster. You don't have to see it if it scares you. Just pretend the face that you see now is really mine."_

_"I want to go home... Please, please, my brothers... Where are my brothers? I told them... I told them..."_

_The woman quickly states with her hands_ _folded over a file stuffed to the brim with papers, "Enough of that. I'm going to do the same thing your master did. I'm going to teach you some new words to test how advanced your cognitive abilities are," She pulls a piece of paper from the file and slides it across the table, asking him as she taps a finger on one of the symbols, "What does this look like to you?"_

_"A...a triangle with a line over it. Don told me -"_

_"No more about your brothers. Not one word. Focus, now. The next one, what does it look like, Leo?"_

_The little turtle's chin quivers as he shakes his_ _head and utters in a quiet voice, "It...It looks like... I don't wanna do this. I don't wanna! You said you'd take me to my brothers..." Another tear trickles down his cheek as he spits out venomously as he slams his balled fists onto the table, waiting for a reaction from the latter, "I just...I just wanna go home!"_

_She doesn't even flinch. "I'll show you them. I'll show you home. But only if you can tell me what these symbols are the one you said looks like a triangle with a line over it is called: mmiri. In your language, it roughly translates to water," The woman explains as she taps her finger against the symbol, "Now, can you repeat that to me, Leo?"_

" _Mmiri..." Leonardo murmurs, his tongue feeling heavy in his mouth. He gives an abrupt rough shake of his head, gasping out,"Na mmiri ka ọ na-etolite, otu ahụ ume m na-akwụsịlata. Wh...what? I don't...I don't know what I said how did I...?"_

_She gives him that same false smile, takes her pencil, and scribbles something down, "The program seems to be working; you're retaining our language. Unfortunately, it will not begin to flow naturally until a few more sessions. Roughly translated into your main tongue it means: And as the water rises, so my breath slows," She commends him, "Well done, Leo. The things we do now may seem strange, unusual, but it'll all make sense...in time. There is a great conflict coming, and with our current methods, we can hardly win a battle, much less a war. This goes far beyond you or me..."_

_Leonardo mutely shakes his head, pleading pathetically as another tear goes down his cheek, "Please... please...!"_

" _Shh. Hush now. Listen to the sound of my voice, let the words wash over you like a rising tide..."_

_"...No...Please, not that. I'm s-scared... I'm scared! Don't - Don't!"_

_The woman sets down the pencil and it rolls across the metal table going to a halt inches away from the mutant turtle's clenched fist on the table. "Don't be. You have no reason to fear me; to fear us. This will help you, Leo," She assures him in that same even tone, "You're underwater...deep, deep underwater."_

_Eyes wide, the little turtle comes out with," I'm underwater... deep, deep underwater."_

_"You're drowning."_

_The blue cladded turtle wails, "I-I'm dro...drowning - No! Stop it! Stop it now!"_

_"Do you want to come back up?"_

_"Get out...Get out of my head! Stop, please! Stop! Stop! Ahhhhh, no! Help me! Help me," The mutant turtle screams as his fingers rake down the sides of his face, his fission blurred with fresh hot tears, "Don't make me - Raph, Don, Mikey! Master Splinter! Help! Help!"_

_Her voice firm and forceful, the woman demands as she leans across the table, "Do you want to come back up?"_

_"...Y...N...N...Yes."_

_The woman exhales softly in relief, continuing with a tiny quirk of her lips"Then take a deep breath and..."_

_With a sideways snap of his arm, Leonardo plunged the pencil into the woman's right eye socket, twisting it there. There was a strangled choke, followed by frantic gurgling as her head violently twitched off to the side and slick, luminous substance that's light blue foams from her painted lips spilling onto the metal table, pooling at her palms. Sparks crackle and pop from the crevice where her eye had been and he can see the curled wires and diodes behind. The blue cladded turtle reached a shaky hand over and seized the pencil. He dislodged it and threw it across the room, the blue substance spattering across the table and squirting over his arms and yellow platted chest. His lips tremble as he kicks his chair back behind him and stumbles backward as his chest rises and falls frantically._

" _What are you..." He asks aloud, his voice thick and trembling._

_The woman's chest emits a soft hiss as two metal panels slid open beneath her shirt and buttons begin to pop off, clinking onto the floor below. A single moist, pale pink tentacle peeps out from the crevice in the robot's chest. The creature rasps weakly, its voice a warbling, spine-chilling moan as it utters," Leo... Leo? Leo?"_

_The blue cladded turtle's hand smacks over his mouth as his eyes take in the creature residing in the woman's abdomen. A great oozing mass of cartilage that shifts and wiggles in the confinement of its android body. A Kraang. The mutant turtle shakes his head in mute denial as he watches a group of android bodies all hosting the brain-shaped aliens' file into the room, surrounding the poor, disoriented little turtle. The minuscule mutant turtle blinks blearily at his captors, his mouth opening and closing rapidly as he breathes unevenly._

_One of the aliens turns to the young mutant scrutinizing him and in a low, eerily calm voice as it comes out with, "You're underwater...deep deep underwater. You're drowning."_

_The turtle's mouth goes slack as he responds distantly, "I'm underwater...deep, deep underwater," Tearfully he adds," I'm...I'm drowning."_

_"Do you want to come back up?"_

_"Yes."_

" _Then take a deep breath and... redux."_


	6. The Tiger Project

April groans as her head sways back and forth, and she grits out, "Don, I'm losing him. I can't see anything. And my head... Gah, my head! It hurts...!"

The human girl flinches violently as she hears one final stream of warbled words fading into the distance. "You're underwater...deep, deep underwater. You're drowning. Do you want to come back up? Then take a deep breath and... redux."

Leonardo comes shouting back to life, thrashing violently as he springs up from his spot on the couch. Raphael immediately leaps towards him, moving to situate his hands over his shoulders. The red cladded turtle's hands barely grazed the skin of his shoulder blades and he suddenly found himself air-born as his older brother seized his arms and sent him flying over the couch with an anguished scream. The blue cladded turtle blinks rapidly as his wide eyes survey his younger brother who was rubbing his head as he comes up on shaky legs from his crumpled position on the ground. Then his blue hues flicker over to the human girl and his purple cladded brother, and he sniffs lightly his jaw clenching tightly and he gulps thickly as his throat bobs.

Wordlessly, Leonardo hastily makes his way out of the room and makes a beeline for the bathroom, slamming the door shut behind him and locking it. After a second, he slowly sinks to the floor and he pulls his hands around his knees, hugging them so close that they dig into his chest. He hears someone's breathing outside the doorway. His mind flashes back to when he and his little brothers were small, delicate little things, a far cry from the pictures of strength and skill they were in the present. He remembers laying awake just to watch all of his little brothers' breath as they lay sleeping on their pile of dirty, sodden rags that served as their shared bed. Now with every intake he hears outside the door, he feels the invisible noose around his neck grow tighter and the door, the room, the sewers beyond are all the further away. He burrows his face into his knees, shaking like a leaf in the wind and he feels warm beads of water cascade down the sides of his face and dribbles down in between his fingers. He doesn't make a sound as his eyes water painfully spilling forth like a leaky faucet and his breath doesn't even hitch.

"You're drowning...drowning...drowning."

There's a knock on the door. "Leo? Leo," Donatello's voice is quiet, fretful, "You're really starting to freak me out. Please just come out, okay? Whatever it is we can talk about it. We can fix it."

Leonardo tries to say something, anything, but he can't. He parts his lips and his voice chokes off in his throat and he feels as if his air is cut off. The words of his brother made no difference at all. The mutant turtle was beyond all reason, beyond all-natural methods of calming. The blue cladded turtle wheezes painfully, clawing at his throat and his crying gradually rises in volume. He drops his head, feeling it loll weakly as his three-fingered hand slaps over his mouth and he moans into it as his eyes blink frantically trying to clear the watery blur from his vision.

"Oh my god, Leo, come on! Talk to me," The purple cladded turtle's voice is no longer quiet nor calm, it is loud and panicking, "Are you hurt?"

"Don," The blue cladded turtle finally manages to choke out, watery, "I'm fine. I just..."

"Don't even try and lie to me, Leo," Donatello hisses, his palm smacking on the door, "I'm serious, Leo. Open this door or I swear, I will go get the others."

Leonardo just can't. He can't face his brother, knowing what he'll have to tell him and he can't breathe. He can't breathe. He's underwater. Deep, deep... He gasps out wetly, dragging his fingers down the steep inclines of his throat, and waits for the door to give in, waits for his brothers' collective angry voices to be mere inches away. To be shaken like a ragdoll when they ask him for an explanation he cannot possibly give. Donatello doesn't kick the door down, and when it opens there's not a gathering of the rest of his siblings and their human friends. The door opens, and his little brother is holding up a small hairpin with a sheepish look on his face. He crouches down on his knees in front of his older brother, quietly pushing the door closed behind them.

"I'm not seeing any injuries," Donatello realizes aloud, "So if you're not hurt..."

Leonardo stubbornly shakes his head and stays quiet, turning his head upwards towards the ceiling in a pathetic attempt to hide his watery eyes. Residual tears trace the underside of his eyes and slowly begin their descent down his flushed cheeks as he audibly gulps.

"So," The purple cladded turtle inquires, crossing his legs and leaning forward to bore holes into his brother's upturned head, "Now you're going to give me the silent treatment? You know, you're usually my favorite brother to be around because you don't pull the same childish antics as Raph and Mike."

"J-just go, Don. Please...please..."

"Leo. Come on, tell me what's wrong."

"It's nothing. I swear," The blue cladded turtle sniffles childishly and sucks in a shaky breath. He grits his teeth and tries once more to futility stop his tears.

"You don't cry for nothing," Donatello declares boldly, his gaze narrowing at the statement, "I know you, Leo. You didn't even shed a tear when Raph pulled your arm out of its socket during a sparring match! Hell, you barely blinked! When you cry, it's bad. It's really bad."

Leonardo stubbornly wipes his face on his arm, and chokes out, "Seriously. I'm fine. I'm just being a baby."

"Come on. I'm out of guesses," Donatello says as his hand runs over his face, "Something's wrong, something's really wrong and I don't...I can't fix it if you won't tell me what it is."

"Don't you see? There is no fixing this, Don!"

"How do you know that," The purple cladded turtle barks back, his voice thick.

The blue cladded turtle mutely shakes his head, before spitting out," Because it's me. Don't you see it? I'm the... the t-thing that's broken here."

Donatello's sharp intake of breath makes the latter flinch. "Don't say stuff like that. Just don't. You're not broken. You're not..." He trails off, and he looks like he might start crying too as he gasps out in a wet voice," You are not broken, Leo. Whatever made you think that... Look at me. Look at me."

The blue cladded turtle glances into his younger brother's eyes, and his lips part ever so slightly.

"We're brothers, Leo. And I want you to know, I have always had faith in you. In the best of times, and even in the worst of times...you've always been there to lead us," The purple cladded turtle's voice was unsure and strained, making the latter's heart shudder," For once let us lead - Just let us lead you. For once you don't have to face this alone. You've always tried to protect and hide us, but who protects you? All I'm asking is that you rely on us...that you trust us the way we trust you."

"Don..."

"Please, just please, tell me what you saw. Tell me what's wrong. Trust me, Leo. Please," Donatello begs.

"So you must choose here and now, if you wish to simply forget everything you've stumbled upon about yourself over these past few weeks, or if you want to keep going down this path, and eventually find the door."

Leonardo grunts softly as he shakily goes to his feet, gently batting away his younger brother's reaching hands and his expression is desolate, his blue hues cold and unfeeling in their sockets. "This incident has likely delayed our patrol. With crime on the streets only getting worse and the Kraang getting bolder we can't afford to slack off," He says, at last, wiping his fingers under his eyes as he brushed away the residual wetness of his tears. His voice almost sounds robotic as he goes on to add, "Tell the others that we're hitting the surface in ten."

The purple cladded turtle stands stock still, recoiling for a second as if his older brother had struck him. Then he slowly nods in acknowledgment, his mouth set in a hardline. Under his breath, he says, "I see," Then after a tense moment he goes on to say in a louder voice, every word sounding distant, "Uh, yeah...yeah I'll, uh, spread the word."

"Good." Then the blue cladded turtle is walking away, feeling the weight of his brother's eyes on the back of his shell. He doesn’t even notice the object clatter from his belt and skid across the floor, landing at his younger brother’s feet. 

———

Leonardo raises a three-fingered hand into the air, signaling his brothers to cease their movements and fall silent. "Hold up, ninjas," His blue hues quickly flicker around the seemingly empty rooftop and he proclaims," I have a feeling we're not alone here."

Gasping, Michelangelo whispers in return," You're right, Leo. We have a potential spy!" He slides across the rooftop towards a fidgety squirrel situated on a ledge, narrowing his eyes at the furry rodent. The squirrel chitters, cocking its head at the turtle then tosses its nut into the air and skitters away.

"Shh," Donatello hisses, going tense," I thought I heard -"

"Foot! Attack," A voice cries from above.

Leonardo's eyes dart heavenward and narrow at the sight of Karai, and he huffs in annoyance, puffing out his cheeks. She sends him a wink, her painted lips twisting into a smirk as she sends him a little wave, wiggling her fingers at him. His hands twitch over the handles of his katana blades, waiting for the inevitable assault and the kunoichi front flips from her perch on the rooftop, expertly swinging her tanto blade as she lands crouched with it drawn at her side. The blue cladded turtle turns his head to see his red cladded brother standing at his side with his sais drawn, his lips curled into a silent snarl. He gives him a curt nod and draws his twin katana, the soft hiss of the metal blades leaving the confines of their sheathes echoing across the rooftop.

"Let's take her down once and for all," Raphael proclaims, spinning his sais barely blocking a blow from the female ninja as she abruptly charges. As he dodges, a footbot chitters loudly jumping towards him with its curved blade drawn, blocking him from assisting his older brother in the fight.

Leonardo ducks the slicing arc of the tanto blade and whips his body around, raising one katana blade to tear at her armored chest and the other to block another sloppy slice at his neck. They both dance chaotically across the rooftop, leading their fight far away from the resounding cries and traded blows of his brothers and their respective foes. The blue cladded turtle crosses his blades, scissoring them where her head had been a mere second before. Her eyes widen as a strangled gasp escapes her, then she snaps her jaw back shut, gritting her teeth as she stoops down underneath the crossing swords, watching as a good chunk of the long hair strands that cup her face floats down onto the concrete rooftop. He then stabs his swords into the ground keeping his hands tightly curled around the hilts as he hoists himself into the air and spins around, slamming his feet into the young woman's unprotected middle and sending her flying through the air. With a cry that sounded more surprised than pained, she falls onto her back, skidding across the rooftop as her hands clutching at her middle. Then she shakily lifts her head and she slowly goes to her feet, swaying ever so slightly, before abruptly straightening and pulling her tanto in front of herself with both of her hands tightly gripping the hilt. Then she dives forward and swipes the hilt of her tanto blade upwards, striking the mutant turtle on the underside of his chin and sending him fumbling backward.

As Leonardo takes several wobbly steps back, dazed, he blindly slashes with one sword, using the other as a shield to block any potential attacks as he blinks rapidly. There's an angry hiss of pain as he feels the tip of his blade catch flesh and he dives forward, sending his padded knee into her stomach. She leaned into the blow rather than allowing herself to be sent flying, and grabs him by his shoulder blades, digging her nails into the leaf-green flesh as they both topple down. His katana blades fumble out of his grip and clatter across the rooftop. The blue cladded turtle wrenches the fingers of one hand through her hair, and he uses his other hand to pin down her wrist as he attempts to force her to release her tanto blade. Fingers tightly gripping her hair, he slams the back of her head against the concrete making her clench her jaw tightly to muffle to moan of pain, but her fingers twitch and he seizes the opportunity, digging his fingers into her wrist. He lifts her head and smacks it against the ground again, and her fingers loosen around the hilt of the blade and he quickly grabs the blade and tosses it across the rooftop. Both unarmed, the mutant turtle situates both of his hands over her wrists keeping her pinned down as he pants harshly, his eyes blown wide as stares down at the young woman. When she smirks and runs her tongue over her painted lips teasingly, the mutant turtle flushes darkly, quickly scrambling off of the young woman and takes a seat on the rough ground leaning back on his elbows.

"I don't think they can see us now -" Leonardo's head snaps to the side as her fist slams onto the left side of his face. His fingers fumble against the wrappings around his wrist as he takes a step back, trying to regain his balance. His fingers curl around one of the small shuriken secured tightly under the layers of cloth, and he feints stumbling forward, before lunging for her and pressing the sharp edge of the blade against her throat threateningly.

The blue cladded turtle grits out in exasperation, giving the tiniest roll of his eyes, "Don't do that again."

"What? Oh, come on, Leo! It's a hell of a lot more fun than saying 'hello', now isn't it?" Karai smiled as though she were genuinely happy to see him, despite his blade pressed firmly against her pale, almost luminous in the moonlight throat, "I thought you weren't boring... Not like the rest of them."

Leonardo's fingers barely grazed the flesh there and he could feel it pucker at his cold touch, small bumps rising against the pads of his fingers. He roughly shoves her away, raising his arm in front of himself and he hurriedly shoved the shuriken back underneath the raveled bandages around his wrist. The blue cladded turtle coughed lightly, feeling fluid rise in his mouth and he winces as he spits out a mouthful of blood-tinged with salvia off to his side. He flinches as he tests his jaw, resting his hand against it as he experimentally moves it.

"Whatever," Leonardo utters, at last, his gaze flickering to the rooftops ahead, "We should be good to talk for a few minutes. But if they start coming this way, I'll pretend to be down for the count so that you have a chance to get away."

Karai chuckles deeply, sitting up and resting her folded arms on her knees. "That was quite the show we put on. But I don't think you were playing nice," She purrs pleasantly as she displays her arm, showing a thick tear in the right black sleeve and the deep gash where his sword had torn into the pale flesh. Blood gushed from the tear in her arm and splashed onto the concrete, but without another word, she tears off the remainder of her sleeve and begins to ravel it around her wound, "No more of that stupid goody-two-shoes act, huh?"

"You punched me."

"Because you cut me, freak," The kunoichi retorts bitingly, displaying the makeshift bandage poorly raveled around her slender, yet firm and muscular arm. She brings her arm back down to her side, her dark brown eyes roll as she goes on with a huffing sigh," So, anything new?"

"I'm still getting tailed by Kraang on every single patrol I go on. Ever since they first failed to capture me they've been shadowing me but every time I finally lay eyes on them, they bolt. I think they're waiting for an opportunity," Leonardo reports as he allows his hand to fall away from his jaw," Or maybe they're waiting for orders. I, uh, don't know."

"That's because we've both been sitting idle, twiddling with our swords for too long. We keep waiting for them to make a move and make no effort to see just what it is that they're doing when we aren't being chased by them," The young woman barks out accusingly, throwing a hand into the air in aggravation.

The mutant turtle replies in a stiff voice, his face motionless in a forced mask of calmness," So you want to what? Try and turn the tables on them by spying on them," His fingers rest on the slight elevation of his snout," Look, I've got constant eyes on me, so it's kind of hard for me to do any sneaking that's not already scheduled, okay? And I think my brothers would notice if I went missing on patrol for more than a few minutes," He shrugs, dropping his arm to his side and continues in a low voice, "It seems my family cares when it's only inconvenient for me. At least that's how it feels nowadays."

"What the hell kind of a teenager are you? Has sneaking out while everyone else is counting sheep never even crossed your annoyingly noble and self-righteous little scaled head?"

The blue cladded turtle presses his lips together and lets out a long-suffering sigh as he points out, "I can't risk that. If I'm caught doing anything other than attempting to put you in an early grave, my brothers will know that I'm up to something and I'll have no choice but to tell them the truth."

"Will you stop working up a sweat over it. I've got it handled. See that dumpster over there," Karai inquires is him, pointing her finger downwards towards an alleyway.

Leonardo jerks his head to the side, his stare falling on the indicated dumpster in question, and asks her, "Why?"

"I told you to trust me," Karai purrs pleasantly, "It's a surprise -"

"Like that's reassuring - "

"A good one - a very good one - that will solve all of our problems," The kunoichi proclaims boldly, then she concedes with a side tilt of her head, "Well, most of them... Okay, one."

The blue cladded turtle crosses his arms over his chest as he questions in a doubtful tone," How?"

"Just meet me there in three hours. We'll still have at least a good five hours of darkness to cover us," She orders him, impatient," I hope you'll like the gift I've left for you there. You'll look good in it."

The mutant turtle rolls his eyes, not even bothering to start another inquiry that would likely be met with a snarky comment. He then stiffens and instinctively reaches an arm out towards her as he wonders aloud, "Wait, what is that?"

Shoving away his arm with a huff she questions gruffly, "What's what?"

At first, neither of them moves, their brains unable to make sense of the input from their ears and feet. The ground is moving and the noise is like extended thunder only worse because the vibrations are coming from below. The brick chimney that towers over their heads shudders and rumbles as the street lights flicker rapidly before going out altogether. Dust fills the air as the building rapidly shakes and the brick structure begins to collapse, small chunks of loosened brick raining down. Leonardo furrows his brows at the sight, before gasping loudly as his heart hammers rapidly in his chest. He dives forward, barely dodging the startled young woman's clenched fist and he snap kicks her in the chest, sending her flailing back away from the collapsing structure. And he cries out thunderously in a sick mixture of pain and terror as hundreds of bricks come collapsing on top of him as he attempts to outrun the crumbling chimney. One strikes him in the back of his head and he goes flailing forward, his breath blown from his lips as his eyes flutter shut and he collapses under the weight of the fallen structure, succumbing to the darkness as he wheezes weakly.

———

"The answer is right in front of you. The path to the door. But you must decide. It's the only way. You will understand in due time."

Leonardo stares into the flickering lights that sparkle in his blue hues, his pupils blown wide as he reaches his twitching fingers forward. His entire form is painted a pale pink from the bright array of color and light exploding from the two, arching twisted metal frame that formed a doorway before him. His lips part ever so slightly and his fingers breach the entryway of the door, and the light ripples around the digits, and sparks fly. He tried to breathe but the air just wouldn't go in as his ears rang painfully and images slowly flowed through his mind. A memory, he realized. A memory he never knew he had taken in, that he hadn't remembered until he'd ventured into the construct of the door in his mind.

" _State your number and designation," A voice crackles in the darkness._

_"Number: MT-1987," Another voice replies, devoid of any emotion, "Designation: Guardian."_

_"Do you know where you are," The voice, soft and feminine, inquires._

_The other voice answers automatically," I'm in a dream."_

" _Before this, do you know what happened?"_

_"...I do not understand. Please restate the question."_

_There is a beat of silence, tense. "I asked if you remember what happened before you woke up here? Would it help if I called you... Leonardo? Or Leo -"_

_Something in the other voice cracks and their voice sounds wet as they utter," Those people, you told me to hurt them_. _I did and they screamed, said things, things I did not understand. And I killed them."_

_"How did that make you feel, Leo?"_

_"Bad. It hurts. Why does it hurt so bad?"_

_The woman tells the other voice," I can make that feeling go away. I can take it all away. Would you like that?"_

_The other voice does not answer. Ragged breathing is the only noise that can be heard in the dark expanse._

_"Leo?"_

_"Leo?"_

" _Leo_ ," A new voice cries in the distance, reverberating in time with the woman.

"Leo! Leonardo! Damn it! Keep digging," Raphael orders roughly, sweeping aside bricks with his arms as he breathes harshly.

"Leo," Michelangelo cries out as his eyes settle on the hunched form of his older brother.

Leonardo lifts his head and groans aloud, "Ugh, I think my shell got knocked loose," He runs a hand over his face, wiping away the thick layer of dirt and he winces as he grazes several new cuts and scrapes that are weeping thick rivulets of crimson, "What was that?"

"Some kind of localized quake," Donatello answers swiftly as he crouched beside him and offered a hand. The latter frowns at the hand and his eyes dart away from it as he goes to his feet, swaying and bumping against his red cladded brother,"...I wonder what caused it?"

"I'm guessing we'll find out," The blue cladded turtle buffs out as his red cladded brother takes his arm and swings it over his shoulder, hauling him upright.

———

"Scientists are calling them microquakes', but they shake so hard, this reporter's hair was badly messed up! No need for concern I'm being treated by my stylist," The reporter on the television announces.

Michelangelo scrunches up his face and exclaims in horror," Dude! His poor hair!"

Raphael rolls his eyes at his younger brother and says in a dubious voice," Earthquakes in Manhattan? Something is definitely up."

Donatello jogs into the room with his laptop and steps in front of the television, waving off his brothers with one hand as they object loudly. "I've been graphing the earthquake epicenters. They're happening in a pattern that's not at all random," He informs the group with a worried frown on his face, indicating the bright red dots on the screen.

"Is that awesome or awesome bad," The orange cladded turtle wonders as he scratches at his head.

"Awesome bad, Mikey," The purple cladded turtle answers firmly," I got weird energy readings under the epicenter. I think some kind of tech is causing quakes."

Narrowing his eyes, the red cladded turtle thinks out loud," Huh. Are you thinking what I'm thinking?"

The orange cladded turtle stares blankly at his older brother and a small smile creeps upon his lips. Growling, the red cladded turtle smacks a hand against his younger brother's face and inquires,"  
Mikey, who has that kind of technology?"

"...Two cats with a screwdriver," Michelangelo answers with his tongue poking out.

"Ugh. I need someone who has thought processes that involve something other than frickin' cats! Where the shell is Leo," Raphael groans aloud, throwing his hands into the air.

Donatello sighs as he tells him," I feel like we have to ask that way too much lately. At least I have an answer for once. He got pretty busted up when that chimney collapsed on him so he's taking the night off in his room."

"Anyone else miss when he was the only one we didn't have to worry about," Michelangelo scoffs out.

"I don't know how much longer I can dance around the whole damn thing. The dude's pepperoni has slipped right off his pizza," Raphael barks out with his eyes narrowed.

The purple cladded turtle concurs," Don't I know it. April is still really shaken up about what she saw in his head. But she won't talk to me about it."

"Somethin' is seriously buggin' him and I don't like not knowin' what it is. Shell, he's our brother! Why won't he just come out and tell us," The red cladded turtle demands angrily as he abruptly goes to his feet, kicking aside an empty pizza box," I am sick and tired of pretendin' that everything is okay when it obviously ain't! He needs help, whether he wants it or not... And he's gotta get it soon."

"I've tried. I have! He won't talk to me. I walked in on him after the whole botched hypnosis session crying like he'd just found out one of us had died -"

The orange cladded turtle squeaks out in surprise," Crying?!"

"Exactly! He doesn't cry. He just doesn't."

A vein throbs in Raphael's neck as he squints his eyes and grits out," I ain't doing it. I'm not gonna let him work through this on his own a damn second longer cause it obviously ain't workin'!"

"And just what do you propose we do," Donatello asks him in a soft voice, running a hand over the smooth surface of his head," He's already trying to push us away. I don't want to give him a reason to."

"I...I...! Hell, I..." Raphael's voice goes quiet, his yell fading off as he answers," I don't have a damn clue."

The purple cladded turtle reaches into his belt and pulls something from one of the many loops. He lays it across his palm, displaying it to his brothers as he states," I think this may give us an idea. He ran out on me not long after I tried to talk to him and he dropped this in his rush."

The flash drive glints in the light and the other two turtles eye it strangely.

———

Leonardo drops down from the ladder landing crouched down as his eyes shift up and down the alleyway. Rising upwards but still keeping his shoulders hunched down, he slowly creeps forward towards the dumpster. He stoops down and runs his hand down the back of the slimy, metal surface of the gigantic bin until his fingers graze cloth. His hand tangled around it and he yanks out an inky black duffel bag covered in streaks of dirt and multicolored stains of unknown origin. He clasps two fingers around the zipper and slowly slides it open, peeking inside the duffel. His hand rummages through the bag, and he pulls out one of the contents, holding it to the dim streetlight.

"Do you like it," A voice questions from above.

The blue cladded turtle glances up and asks, "What is it, Karai?"

The kunoichi slides down the ladder and drops down beside the mutant turtle, answering him with a smirk, "Your costume," She swiftly says as she lowers her finger and rolls her eyes at him," I'm getting to that. Tell me, Leo, are you familiar with the structure of the Foot Clan, or anything about its sister branch located in Japan?"

"I haven't exactly had any time to do any research considering every time I set a foot on the surface I get an arrow shot at my head or some new mutant of the week siced on me."

In Leonardo's grip is a black bodysuit that resembles the standard Foot ninja's uniform, except for two large crimson Foot Clan symbols stitched into the shoulder blades. He also finds a red utility belt made of a thick leather material that has two sheathed tanto blades on either side and a pair of twin katana blades with black and silver handles crossed and strapped on the back. The length of the belt that's supposed to pull across his chest is equipped with midnight black throwing stars with the same bloody red symbol painted in the middle. He also finds a thick and long red scarf that's wrapped around a silver gauntlet, and his finger runs down the length of it, curiously pressing a small button. He flinches as a two svelte blades eject from the middle, the onyx black metal glinting in the streetlight.

"My costume," Leonardo scoffs humorously," So tell me what's going to make the Shredder turn a blind eye to a new up-and-coming clan member that tends to hang around his teenage daughter?"

Karai holds up a hand and utters in a placating tone," That uniform belongs to a secret order within the Foot Clan. The Sairento Kenshi - the Silent Swordsmen."

"What about them?"

"They're an elite order bound to the high-ranking members of the Foot Clan. Gloried bodyguards really. Each member takes a vow of silence, a vow usually held by removal of the tongue, before they can serve their respective masters so that they cannot spill any secrets. And their true names and faces remain hidden for as long as they live...which usually isn't long," She explains and crouches down and slams the duffel into the latter's arms, "If you are seen with me wearing this no questions will be asked, for it would require you to break the vow of silence or show your true face. My father is known for his lack of honor, but he does not allow for the breaking of any of the early codes of our clan."

Clutching the duffel to his chest, Leonardo demands, "And if I'm recognized?"

"You won't be. Now, get that on. We don't have much time until I'm called back," Karai orders, turning her back to him as she crosses her arms over her chest, "Be quick about it."

"I-I...I can't. I know I agreed, but...but this goes against everything that I've been taught. Everything that I've fought for —"

The kunoichi presses her lips together and lets out an aggravated snarl as she snaps," Even I realize that this bigger than any vendetta our families have against one another. We've been dancing the same dance for months now," She says as his voice falls softer, taking a tentative step forward as she rests a gloved hand on his cheek, trailing her fingers of the jaw bone," Aren't you tired? Tired of always playing the part of the good guy because it's obviously gotten you nowhere in the bigger war here - the war with the Kraang. When they take you away from your family poking, probing, extracting your unyielding honor will be no more comforting than a night light. They'll just keep carving and carving you -"

"Stop it."

"Why," Karai demands with a tight-lipped smile," Am I starting to make sense? You're afraid - Push it down, hide it, but I can almost smell it on you. You may not be able to die, but your family and your friends are still just like to rest of us...vulnerable little bags of meat. Do you understand me? Put aside your damn heroics for once and think about the fate of the world rather than that of your consciousness."

Leonardo stays silent for a few moments as he bites at his lip and he hunches over as he, at last, confessed in a timid voice," I've been...remembering things lately. Small things, brief flashes really, but they're memories. I don't know how any of them happened or even exactly when," He gulps thickly, going on after a beat with his voice strained," They turned me into a damn nuclear warhead. A weapon."

"Who? Who, Leo?"

"Who else? The Kraang. They...they did this to me. They somehow got to me when I was young. And they experimented on me," The blue cladded turtle had meant it to sound simple, and also he'd meant to have spoken with ease, not lowly and skittish as he'd somehow made it turn out to sound like," I don't have any scars, no physical deformities, no sign that they ever did a damn thing to me. Nothing but a few meager memories and this curse that I'm saddled with. I...I want to know why they did this to me, why they took me from my family, turned me into a freak among freaks, then made me forget all of it."

The kunoichi hisses, running her hand down to rest on his chest," And we'll find out... together."

The blue cladded turtle frowns deeply as he splays his fingers over his eyes. His nostrils flare as he inhales noisily and he parts his lips to let out a shaky, softer exhale. His fingers fumble behind his head, trying to undo the knot that holds the blue cloth in place over his eyes. He stiffens when he feels smaller fingers dance over the smooth surface of the back of his head that undo the knot with ease. The cloth flutters in the wind and lands on the damp concrete beneath his feet. The same hands slap against his shoulders, forcing him to turn around to face her and she helps him undo his utility belt and the wrappings around his legs and arms. The mutant turtle feels bare, naked in front of the human girl and a faint blush graces his cheeks as he diverts his gaze away. The latter rolls her dark brown hues at him and reaches into the duffel, tossing him the black bodysuit.

Several minutes later Karai takes a step back to observe her work, cocking her head at him as she rests a finger on her chin. "Wow, I actually hate you slightly less now that I'm seeing you wearing my team flag," She concurs and pulls forward a small tin, observing aloud, "Just one final touch. Close your eyes."

Leonardo obeys and get feels a sticky, wet substance spread over his lids and a shiver runs down his spine. He asks, his voice muffled by the tight cloth mask around his face, "What is that?"

"Black paint. I could still see a little green around your eyes behind the mask," The kunoichi tells him and she goes on after a beat, "You're not gonna chicken out on me, are you, Leo?"

"...Let's just go, before I do," Leonardo utters, adjusting the thick, fur-lined gloves over his three-fingered hands, "What is it we're doing?"

"We're not actually going to be dealing with any of those pink alien wackos tonight that I know of. First, I need you to come with me," Karai tells him in a stiff voice, almost as if anticipating his reaction.

The blue cladded turtle's brows snapped together as he utters," To what - To...? Oh...Oh, no. That's not happening," He shakes his head and waves his arms back and forth in objection," Not in a million years! I'm not just casually waltzing into the Shredder's lair with you -"

The kunoichi barks out," Listen, Leo! If we want this whole alliance to work without anyone on our respective side to find out, we need to get a charade going, okay," She grits out," If I'm spotted hanging around with one of the turtles by one of my dad's goons it's a little bit suspicious! Yeah? But if I'm spotted with my new bodyguard... Do you see what I mean?"

"I agreed to play the part, but I didn't agree to do an opening night at the Shredder's lair!"

"If you follow my lead and keep your lips zipped, you'll be fine! But you have to be spotted with me in the lair a few times, or they'll get suspicious," Karai hisses back at him," Tonight my father returns from Japan and mark my words if you try and use this opportunity to do anything to further your clan's position in our war... I will make you wish death was a possibility for you. I will take your friends, your family, everything that you've ever loved...and burn them. I will burn them all, and leave you nothing but ashes."

———

"Remember, not a word. But the Silent Swordsmen are known not only for their lack of tongues and their eye-catching appearance but their deadliness in battle. You have to play the part," Karai whispers as she leads him down the dimly lit hallway of the abandoned church, stopping in front of two large wooden doors that lead into the main throne room,"...You have to leave your do-gooder attitude behind and become everything you've sworn off your entire life. Just do what I told you to do."

After a beat, Leonardo gives her a curt nod and whispers lowly in reply," I...I'm trusting you. Don't make me regret it, or you will."

The kunoichi scoffs, hissing in reply," Even your threats are weak," She lets out a shuddering breath and pushes open the doors," C'mon."

Standing at his full height and walking a slow, methodical walk behind Karai, Leonardo makes his way into the throne room. Foot Bots are lined up in neat rows on either side of the room, unusually silent and stiff without any known foes to face. Rahzar and Fishface stand off to the right side of the throne, both leaning forward to stare at the kunoichi and the stranger trailing behind her. The wolf mutant lets out a low growl, baring his teeth at the unexpected guest, while his fishy companion twists his webbed hand around his switchblade instinctively. On his knees on the left side of the throne is Baxter Stockman who gives him a pathetic stare, his lips trembling, before he nervously ducks his head. Leonardo moves almost robotically as he attempts to will his stiff limbs to move and he breathes coming out fast and frantic as his eyes meet those of the man seated high up on the throne - The Shredder.

The blue cladded turtle focused in on his eyes, which were staring right back into his, gleaming wickedly in the dull light. One was a deep, earthy brown - the color of the earth after torrential rains. But there was something else in them, something that burned. And it went beyond the twisted mass of flash his face had become after it had been kissed by fire on that fateful night so long ago. The eye that wasn't fogged over burned bright and hard like lightning setting fire to a tree on a stormy night. The unmoving gaze was accompanied by deliberate slow breathing, and his hands clenched over the handles of his throne.

"Daughter. We were just about to begin without you," The Shredder's voice booms across the expanse of the throne room," You are grievously late. I trust you will not be so again."

"Hai," Karai utters softly, giving a curt bow, before taking her place at his right side. Leonardo trails closely behind, before halting and giving a quick bow at the base of the throne.

Cocking his head ever so slightly the Shredder goes on after a beat, his voice low and accusatory," And it seems you have an uninvited guest."

"Forgive me, Father. The turtles and their sensei took advantage of your absence and attempted to take my life in ways that lacked honor, so I have tasked one of the Silent Swordsmen to stay at my side during my personal patrols," Karai explains swiftly with her head still bowed low.

The Shredder rumbles waving a hand in the mutant turtle's direction," What is this one know as? I do not believe I have encountered him before and I have visited the temple of their training in the Utsugi mountains many times."

"This is one is called Yokai." Leonardo takes that as his cue and bows graciously before the throne.

"Has he had his tongue removed yet? You cannot trust a man who can still speak secrets," The Shredder ponders aloud, eyes curiously assessing the length of the mutant on his knees before him.

'And somehow we're the freaks,' Leonardo thinks to himself as he gives an involuntary shudder.

"No, Father. I am his first master, so he has not yet undergone the Ōkina Chinmoku. And he is no man, but a boy," The kunoichi says in a firm voice raising her head to meet her father's eyes," But despite his young age he received high praise from the elders and is regarded as their best and brightest pupil. But I have already promised him that if he breaks his vow of silence that boy or not, I will personally rip out his tongue."

"Very well. We will speak more on this at another time," The Shredder growls his voice raw as his hands clenched at the arms of the throne and he straightens," I have returned, and I bring with me the most feared assassin in all of Asia."

All heads in the room turn at the sound of the twin doors creaking open and preceding thunderous footfalls. Leonardo's eyes widen as they take in the great hulking tiger mutant in a western outfit slowly, deliberately making his way towards the throne. He wears bandoliers full of replacement bullets and carries several weapons, among which include a giant sword strapped to his back, and two holstered firearms. A blue scarf covers his thick neck and underneath his skin-tight mask, the mutant turtle's brows furrow. The tiger mutant stops right off to the side of him, his symmetrical eyes that are shaped like round leaves widening almost imperceptibly as their eyes meet for a brief second. They were large and liquid gold with longitudinal pupils that spark at some angles in the low torchlight.

Leonardo grins at the tiger mutant holding his arms upward as he bounces up and down on his heels, chanting ecstatically," Takeshi-san! Oniisan!"

In the midst of his blue hues his pupil's dilate and sweat beads underneath the skin-tight bodysuit, making it feel is if it's tightening around him, suffocating him. His heart beats so fast that he wants to jump right out of his skin. His breathing became more rapid, more shallow and he felt a primal urge to flee. He feels just like a young turtle again, shaking, terrified as he stared transfixed at the mysterious tiger mutant.

Shredder's voice deep and gravely snapped him out of his thoughts. "Tiger Claw."

"This is your secret weapon, Father," Karai demands angrily, stomping forward as she inclines an arm towards the tiger mutant," Another mutant?"

Releasing a growl in response, Tiger Claw hisses in a deep, rumbling voice," This is the Foot Clan you promised me? I must say, Master Shredder, I am disappointed."

Leonardo's eyes dart to Karai's hand which is fixed over her tanto blade. It happens in seconds, the kunoichi pulls her blade out and holds it over her head, preparing to strike the tiger mutant. Tiger Claw unholsters his gun with a blink and you miss it speed and points it square into her face, powering it up with a low thrum. Leonardo's katana blade is already planted against the latter's thick, furry throat, and the tiger mutant emits a barely audible growl that rumbles against the blade, fogging the metal with his heated breath.

Fishface is the one to step in between the two with his webbed hands clasped together, and he utters in a sickly sweet voice," I honor you, great Tiger Claw. Can I offer you refreshments?"

"Milk," Tiger Claw replies briskly, slowly easing back his blaster," Skim."

Leonardo lowers his blade and sheaths it with a metallic hiss. Karai copies him with a glower and whisper her tanto blade around her back, shoving it back into its sheath, then quips," Sensitive subject maybe... But shouldn't tigers have tails?"

"Don't mock me, child. It was a rival who sliced off my tail. One day I will find it and he will pay the price," The tiger mutant boldly claims as he snatches the small glass of milk from the offered tray and proceeds to lap it up with the long, pink tongue.

Karai rolls her eyes and says pointedly," If you can't keep your own tail -"

"Silence, Karai," The Shredder snarls, slamming a gloved fist on the sidearm of this throne, his thick, metal gauntlet clashing loudly against it," You will treat Tiger Claw with the utmost respect. He is my new second in command."

The kunoichi shrieks," What? I've earned that job, not some oversized cat that probably tries to catch a laser -"

"Enough! Tiger Claw," The Shredder barks out roughly, "You will confer with Karai and learn about our enemies in the Hamato Clan, and when the time comes...you will be the one to bring them before me, so that they may answer for their crimes against our clan. Karai, do not disobey him."

"Yes, Father."

The Shredder then turns his attention back to Tiger Claw and inquires of him," Tell me, Tiger Claw, have you visited the temples of the Silent Swordsmen in the mountains of Utsagi in recent years?"

"Hai, Master Shredder. I learned many of my skills with my broad sword because of their order's mastery of the blade."

"Have you ever heard of this young new recruit that was matched with my daughter - this Yokai?"

Tiger Claw answers after a second and gives the latter a nod," Hai. I sparred against him and nearly lost what remained of my tail. He shall serve the clan well," He politely tilts his head in the direction of the turtle mutant, "It is good to see you again, Yokai-san. Perhaps when I am more settled in you will allow me to risk another spar with you?"

Leonardo gives him a stiff nod, his heart beating like an out-of-time drum in his chest. His mouth is dry and his eyes are blown wide as he goes completely stiff. Tiger Claw turns on his heel and exits the room, and all Leonardo can do is stare stupidly at the doorway, even seconds after he is gone. Dismissed, one by one the other members of the Foot Clan begin to file out and the Shredder demands a private audience with his daughter so he is dismissed to wait in the hallway. He peaks his head to the right and left side of the long, winding halls, not seeing anyone, only to let out a startled squeak that is muffled against a suffocatingly large paw that cups his mouth.

Tiger Claw has him hoisted into the air with a paw that's tangled into his bodysuit, and he pins him up against the wall, keeping his ginormous paw tight around his jaw. "I am going to take away my paw. Not a sound, cub, or it will die in your throat."

Leonardo mutely nods and the paw slowly draws away, dropping back down to the tiger mutant's side. Tiger Claw leans his snout down to the turtle's lower neck and inhales deeply, then exhales noisily the hot air blasting against the mutant turtle's leaf green skin. The blue cladded turtle turns a hot shade of crimson in embarrassment, attempting to crane his neck away as he clears his throat.

"Do you know who I am? Who I really am," Tiger Claw inquires of the mutant turtle, his golden hues assessing him carefully, "Answer me, cub."

"I...I...I don't know. No, no, I do, but...I only saw your face and I heard your name, but how did you -"

The tiger mutant cuts him off with a wounded-sounding growl, his long, pointed claws digging into the fabric bundled into his paw. "How can you not remember me?"

The blue cladded turtle tells him, his teeth grit tightly as he chokes out pointedly, "I don't remember a lot of things it seems."

"Interesting. They'd told me that they'd rewritten your memories, but I did not know that they had chosen to write me out completely."

"Who? The Kraang," Leonardo wonders aloud as his lips part, "If you know about them then you know about..."

Tiger Claw finishes in a quiet voice, his gaze darting away for a second, "You. I know everything about you..." His free paw grasps the top of the skintight mask that covers his face and he gently pulls it down so that it pools over the back of his neck, revealing the full length of the mutant turtle's dirty, sweat-ridden face, "Little cub. Leonardo."

"Little cub," Tiger Claw utters crouching down on one knee and opening his arms for the small mutant turtle that's dashing towards him. The ting, young Leonardo jumps into his arms, raveling his arms tightly around the mutant tiger's thick, furry neck and pulling off his blue scarf.

The blue cladded turtle whispers softly, his blue hues softening, "I...I do know you. I can only see flashes, images, but...I know you," He looks fixedly into the other mutant's golden gaze," Takeshi, you won't hurt me. I can feel it inside of me and every cell of my body tells me that you would never, ever try to hurt me."

"No, I won't, little cub," The mutant tiger admits, gingerly lowering the latter back down until the bottoms of his feet kiss the ground, "Go, now. We will speak again when the time is right. For now, there are too many eager eyes and ears."

Leonardo quickly pulls the black mask back over his face, giving the latter a knowing up and down motion of his head. "I don't know how much longer I can stand being in the dark about who I am, about what I can do. You'll tell me?"

"I'll tell you what I can. I can promise no more."

The mutant turtle nods again, his voice thick as he questions," I'll see you again?"

"You will, little cub. You will, but it will not be as comrades the next time... I know this."


	7. It’s No Good

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Huzzah, the edits are done!   
> Next — A NEW CHAPTER   
> Opinions?   
> Thoughts?   
> Comment below?

Leonardo is in complete and total darkness. He is standing in front of the door. He slowly raises his hand to rest on the cold surface and he pushes back against it, watching as great beams of pale pink light stream out from inside. He cocks his head, the voice inside urging him to venture further, and he obeys, dipping his hand into the rippling mass of neon pink light.

" _Wake him up..." A voice orders in the distance, breaking out of the darkness like static._

 _A light overhead clicks on, humming lowly as it spills a blinding beam of rays over a prone figure sitting in the middle of the room, his round blue hues not giving so much as a twitch at the sudden onslaught of brightness. The small frame of the young mutant turtle is sitting straight in a metal chair, his feet dangling several inches above the stark white floor. His head is bowed forward, his chin slouching against his yellow-platted chest. His finger gives a twitch, then a tremor runs up his arm as it abruptly jerks from its spot on the chair. The tremor spreads throughout his small, prone form, until all of his limbs at vibrating with movement, when his muscles abruptly stiffen, pulling taught as he goes completely still again. The turtle slowly raises his head, the muscles in his face remain eerily lax, not giving even the slightest twitch as h_ is _eyes flash open, but his pupils remain needle-thin dots, not focusing on anything._

_There's a long silence, then a voice. "Can you hear me, MT-1987?"_

_"Yes," Leonardo answers mechanically, his blue hues staring straight ahead at the wall and unblinking._

" _Can you tell me where you are?"_

_The young mutant turtle replies in a quiet voice, "I am dreaming...I have been...for the longest time. And I cannot wake up."_

_"Yes. You are in a dream. None of this is real," The voice responds in affirmation, "But you can wake up. Would you like to?"_

_"I've been asleep for the longest time," Leonardo's eyes widen in the faintest fashion, showing the first signs of lucidness and his voice goes slightly higher, "I want to wake up."_

_The voice automatically replies, "You have another mission. You must not fail. It is time to wake up," There is a brief moment of silence and then the voice, hardly more than a whisper, continues, "Listen to my voice, let it wash over you. Do not fight it. Do not fight me. You're underwater...deep, deep underwater..."_

_The young mutant turtle is floating in the miasma, black and still and deep, when he feels a cold stillness settle deep in his bones. He knows this feeling. His mind is screaming._

" _I'm underwater...deep, deep underwater," Leonardo repeats, his voice devoid of all emotion. His eyes go slack once more, the pupils shrinking into needle points._

_"...You're drowning..."_

_The young mutant turtle gulps thickly, his voice giving the slightest tremor as he murmurs in response,"...I'm drowning."_

_"Do you want to come back up?"_

_"...Yes."_

_"Then take a deep breath and... redux."_

_Leonardo takes in a long, rattling breath and darkness pushes in from the corners of his vision. His hearing explodes into high-pitched ringing. The next time he blinks open his eyes the world around the mutant turtle is a pencil drawing, made up of nothing but thin lines and billowy shadows of charcoal hue. The room wasn't visible to him, beyond a shadowy blur which was tinged with a stark whiteness; a landscape of abstract shapes and swathes of non-color. He could see a fuzzy shape, a dark blur that hovered off in the side of his vision. He began to blink rapidly trying to readjust his vision. The mutant turtle could feel his nostrils shifting curiously, and he lets out a low, throaty exhale at the stank of harsh chemicals and beneath it all, the smell of the sick and the dying. The mutant turtle swiveled his eyes upward and flinched at the sudden brightness from the ginormous, overbearing light fixture that hung overhead. Clenching his eyes shut tightly, the mutant tried to get used to the harsh light as he gradually peaked open his lids._

_Off to either side of the light fixture, two robotic arms are extended over Leonardo, the thin metal beams that made up their spindly limbs stained with dark red blood. One whirred softly, slowly lowering over the mutant turtle as his eyes went round and he could only release a sharp breath as the groping metal limbs descended upon his prone form. A strange sensation flowed through the mutant turtle, and his eyes flickered up to see the two robotic claws clutching what appeared to be a bloodied chunk of meat that has several minuscule, jagged pieces of metal protruding from it. The spindly metal limbs gingerly lowered the strange, pulsating chunk of meat, which made a squelching sound as it was plopped in a large metal tray on the side of the table. Thick, red gouts of blood begin to pool onto the bottom of the tray, dribbling down from the surface of the organ. It is then the young mutant turtle realizes he is staring at a very real lung that was still stubbornly fluttering with weak, spastic movements like a deflating balloon._

_Leonardo's eyes slowly swivel forward, landing on his chest and he emits a soft barely audible gasp that is muffled beneath his stiff, unmoving lips, for the young mutant turtle's plastron is split wide open. He is being dissected. The realization made his blood run cold, but he cannot even part his lips to scream, and his eyes widen almost imperceptibly, a single tear trickling down the side of his blood-stained cheek. He finds an impossible strength to slowly move his ravaged body and he turns his head to the side. His lean, muscular limbs have been cleanly sliced open, the folds of the leaf green skin pinned back with small metal bonds that pierce his skin, but he can feel his disconnected muscles work despite the damage. The table is slick with the thick, coursing surges of claret so when he, at last, manages to twist his head off to the side, his cheek lays in a pool of the cooling fluid. One eye is closed, damp with blood. His other eye is round and open, and it lands on the figure laying on another metal table to the opposite of him. Another mutant turtle._

' _No,' he thought desperately, pleading internally as his breathing began to come out in harsh, gasping rasps as he tried to move further, 'Please, please, no. They promised. They promised me they wouldn't hurt them. My brothers...Mikey, Don, Raph... Which one is it?! Which one did they...?'_

_The other mutant turtle laying on the table is dead, Leonardo can tell that much. The turtle was laid on the back of his shell, not three feet away from him, in a similar pool of blood that was almost dried. His green skin is drained of nearly all color, a luminescent milky white with the faintest hint of green and his lips are dry and cracked, creased into a slightly parted, bloodless line. His blue eyes were wide open, but the irises held a sudden sadness. The simple white gown that is tied around his neck is crusted with blood. His eyes skimmed over the corpse and relief visibly washes over him at the realization that this wasn't one of his brothers, but as his eyes continued to scrutinize the face of the turtle — Stiff and unmoving as his stomach heaved, his vomit splashed over the side of the table, and his nostrils filled with the thick, overpowering smell of bile and that same faint tinge of disinfectant. For when he stares at the torn and bloodied body of the mutant turtle at his side, he is staring helplessly at his own pale and lifeless face. He screams —_

Leonardo woke up in a cold sweat, loudly gasping for breath as his hands frantically scrabbled up and down his platted chest, clawing at the ridges. There were two sheets on him, but he was freezing. Deliberately slowing his harsh, frantic breaths, the blue cladded turtle pushed himself up on his elbows in his bed. His blue hues darted down to his plastron and he feels bile rise in his throat, which he quickly gulps down with a muffled groan as he slaps his hand over his mouth, fully sitting upright. He flinched, clenching his eyes shut, as a foreign pain throbbed in his skull, like a toothache in his brain, and his free fingers clutched at the side of his head. Teeth grit tightly, he let out a muffled moan of relief as the pain slowly began to subside, and he dared to blink open his eyes.

Leonardo first notes that he is still wearing almost all of his gear, except for a missing knee pad, and his wrappings are crumpled and misaligned on his legs and arms. His signature blue mask hangs loosely from his neck, the long tails grazing down the back of his shell. They feel damp against his neck. The blue cladded turtle had been sloppy while changing back into his normal attire after his late-night excursion to the surface, and abruptly, like getting struck by a train, all of last night's events slammed into him. The mutant turtle had all but been initiated last night as the newest addition to the rapidly growing collection of freaks in the Foot Clan. Leonardo was in the Foot Clan, a willing servant of the Shredder, and it was hardly more than a blip on his radar. But the more he thought of just what he had gotten himself into, the more an all too familiar guilt for what he had done began to slowly, eat him alive. He was the eldest, the leader of the team and he felt he had betrayed his brothers and master. The mutant turtle felt he should have done something besides agree to a half-witted plan that involved him bearing the symbol of the enemy. When had his humble life as a mutant turtle trained in ninjitsu, that happened to be a teenager turn into some kind of fruit-bat fever dream?

'But what happened after—after I went to Foot Headquarters,' The thought bothered him. He did not remember coming home.

Leonardo turned to his nightstand but found the alarm clock had been knocked over. Leaning over the bed with a groan to lift it, he was shocked to find that it was nearly noon. Shaking his head, the mutant turtle quickly got out of bed and sped out of his room, immediately darting into the bathroom. The blue cladded turtle hurriedly shoves the door shut behind himself, twisting the small lock on the knob into place, before he goes to the stand in front of the sink. Stark white bandages are tightly raveled around the mutant turtle's head, his attempt at keeping up the pretense he had a serious injury from his one-sided fight with the crumbling structure of a chimney. His greatly exaggerated injury had been enough to excuse his absence from the fray going down in the laboratory, which in turn made his late-night solo trip to the surface last night go unnoticed. The blue cladded turtle's head began to throb again. Squeezing his eyes shut, he willed the pain to go away. The rest of the world became detached, all he could concentrate on was the pain rooted deep in his head. A sharp, wrenching pain deep in his skull that is joined by flashing colorful spots in his dark vision makes him cry out, and the fingers clutching his forehead begin digging small crescent moon indentions into the leaf green flesh there.

"Don't panic," Leonardo whispered. His eyes kept flickering up to the image of himself in the mirror, and then back again. Then his eyes go round as his vision is overtaken by a series of jumbled images.

_"...you're deep, deep underwater..."_

_The screaming had stopped so very suddenly. One minute the blue-haired man with all of the piercings was right in Leonardo's face, more alive than he had ever been, and the next he was meat on the concrete flooring of the warehouse. The katana blade was sharp enough to cut flesh as if it were tissue paper. At once a fountain of red came from the wound, the ebb and flow in time with a terrified heart, killing the man all the faster as he gurgled weakly on the floor. His hands scrabbled over the deep tear in his throat, but no matter the pressure he applied the blood had still gushed between his tattooed fingers and oozed under his hands. The blue cladded turtle cocked his head to the side, blinking once as a smile tugged at his thin lips._

"Gah," The blue cladded turtle grunts out gutturally, "W-what's h...happening t-to m-m-me...?"

As the brief vision fades away, the pain subsides with it. Leonardo takes a deep, choking breath and stumbles forward, his hands flying forward to clumsily grasp the sides of the sink to steady himself. He ducked his head forward, resting his forehead on the cool glass of the mirror. A thin sheen of mist sullied the mirror as he brought his head upright and a frown twitched across his lips. He brought a single finger up and pressed it against the glass, smudging two dots that lined up with his eyes in the reflection and a single, long curve that matched his own deep-seated frown. Gulping thickly, he ducked his head down, settling it against the mirror again as he brought one fist to his side and slammed it into the side of the sink.

"It's okay," Leonardo said. He did that a lot, muttering to himself as though saying the words out loud would actually make it true, "It's going to be fine."

"Leo," Raphael barks out, banging a fist on the door, making the latter jolt, "You shavin' your legs in there or somethin'? Move your shell!"

The blue cladded turtle frantically turns on the faucet and splashes cold water over his face, before wrenching open the door and comes snout to snout with his red cladded brother. He takes a step back, stuttering out with pink laced cheeks as his eyes dart away, "What do you want?"

"Don found something," The red cladded turtle says, shoving his way past him, ignoring the latter's pained burst of air, and into the bathroom, "Something that's actually pretty helpful. So it looks we've caught a break for once. He's been tracking those micro-quakes or whatever and the egghead managed to find an epicenter."

Leonardo inquires of the latter as he scoops his mask up from around his neck, fitting the eyeholes over his blue hues, "To where?"

"Here. Well, in our area, and that ain't good news for us. Oh, yeah," Raphael informs his older brother as he shoves his brother's missing knee pad into his fumbling hands," Found this on the floor by the way. And by found it, I mean I tripped on it -"

Leonardo cuts the latter off, demanding contemptibly, "Yeah, I would think not! Why didn't you guys wake me up earlier," He secures his knee pad over his newly raveled wrappings and then he straightens to hurriedly fasten the series of straps that held his katana sheathes in place, "I could've used a bit of an earlier notice!"

The red cladded turtle's green eyes seem to be nearly consumed with the black inkiness of his pupils in the dim light of the bathroom and he utters in a low, uncharacteristically calm voice, "Look, we didn't wanna bother you. You've got that nice-sized goose egg on your head, so we figured you needed to get some shut-eye," He continues after a short beat, leaning against the sink with his armed crossed over his yellow platted chest. His dark emerald eyes seemingly darting everywhere in the room, rather than settle on his brother, "And I hate to tell ya, Leo, but you haven't exactly been up to snuff lately, okay?"

The blue cladded turtle shifts in place uncomfortably, daring to question his younger brother further, "What's that supposed to mean?"

Raphael cocked an eyebrow at the latter, finally bringing his eyes up to meet his older brother's. He scoffs out in response, "You're kiddin' me, right? Jeez, Leo, just take a look in the damn mirror and you'll see exactly what I mean - Look at yourself! You're a damn skeleton... you don't eat, you barely sleep and you spend most of your free time mutterin' to yourself or fuckin' training. Something ain't right with you. Something in there," He stares at his older brother incredulously and juts a finger against the latter's forehead in emphasis, pressing it down hard as he goes on to growl in annoyance, "Now, Don and Mikey are already headin' off to do their own thing, so that means I'm stuck with you watchin' my six, which sure as hell ain't reassuring in the slightest. But we've gotta get a move on!"

Leonardo's forehead creased as he rose one hand to smack his brother's away from him, and his narrowed eyes scrutinized the latter. "Don't you do that, Raph. Don't you dare treat me like...like I've flown over the damn cuckoo's nest when this is me trying to keep up that stupid 'fearless leader' act," A rough bark of laughter rips from his throat before he can stop it, "Let's just say that if I was being completely honest with you..."

_"...you'll forget all of this... I can take it away —"_

_A dark grin passed across his thin lips as Leonardo heard the thunder fall of a dozen other footsteps. He swayed as if drunk, inclining his head towards the gaggle of men as he whipped out his second katana, flashing them his teeth._

Leonardo's head gave a lengthy throb as the images flashed violently in his vision. He gulps, trying to compress the tight knot in his throat and he barely manages to grit out,"...you guys really would have me in a looney bin - straight jacket and all!"

"Oh, so you've got more of the crazy than we initially thought, huh? That's comfortin', Fearless. Real comfortin' when we gotta move and I need back-up and that means you!"

"Raphael," Leonardo growls, irritated. He runs a hand over his eyes, catching the bridge of his snout with his fingers as he exhales noisily. He tries to speak his next words with authority, but his voice wavers with a tremble of weariness and he knows his blue hues betray him as well, "You know what - no. We're not doing this right now. I can't do this right now. But keep this in mind; I'm the leader, not you. You don't get to try and bench me, not unless I am physically or mentally incapable of leading this team -"

"And are you?"

"...am I what?"

Raphael retorts coldly as he cocks his head at the latter, his emerald eyes taking on a vicious glint, "Are you in control? Or are you finally gonna lose your stinkin' marbles and leave us to pick 'em up?"

Leonardo does not verbally acknowledge the cruel comment but his eyes bore holes into the wall as the hands at his sides ball into tight, pale-knuckles fists. Anger and hurt almost blurred his sight but he tightened his jaw and lifted his head to glare at his younger brother. "Come on. I thought we were in a hurry," He utters in a stiff voice, shouldering past him with his katanas clinking softly in their sheathes against his shell as he begins to make his way through the pit of the lair, "You can fill me in on the rest of the details on the way. I'm guessing you'll be driving?"

"Ain't no drivin' to be done. I told you it was close. And I meant damn close," The red cladded turtle says, trailing after his brother, "Which means we'll just have to hoof it. Do you wanna hold hands so you don't try and wander off? Don't want you gettin' lost or takin' a tumble down a drainage pipe, eh?"

Leonardo hisses, his brows snapping together in unison with a faint curl of his lip, "Oh, it's nice to know you trust me sooo much..."

Raphael throws his hands up in a defensive gesture as he jogs forward to match the latter's gait, then he begins to walk backward with his hands folded behind his neck, a shit-eating grin pulled tight across his lips. Leonardo gives a lengthy roll of his eyes, not sparing a glance towards the open door that led into his purple cladded brother's laboratory. The chattering of his other three brothers, including his red cladded brother, and their two human allies echoed from within. The blue cladded turtle pushes past the turnstiles and follows what he assumes to be his red cladded brother into the depths of the winding sewer tunnels.

———

April hands over the small device to the purple cladded turtle, going on to say, "But yeah, then you press this button. And portable, er, portal."

"Wow. The Kraang are always one step ahead. I wonder if this is what's behind the earthquakes," Donatello hums in thought, cupping his hands around the device as he brings it to his work table for further inspection.

Raphael's green gaze assesses the room and he states gruffly, "Guess we'll need to recap everything for Leo later. Where is our Fearless Leader anyway? Don't tell me he's still in the land of nod!"

"I tried to like give him a good shake to get him awake, dude, but he wouldn't budge. Sensei said to just let him sleep in for a while since we didn't really have any leads," Michelangelo informs the group.

Donatello clicks the button and stumbles back, using a cupped hand to shield his eyes as the portal springs to life, spilling bright pink light into the sun laboratory. He blows air out through his lips as he cautiously walks the length of the portal, his reddish-brown eyes comically round as they goggle at the shimmering form of the triangular space.

The purple cladded turtle utters dubiously, "We're gonna have to test it."

April frowns, her eyes squinting under the harsh bright light, and she abruptly thinks, 'Why didn't I see it before? That light... the door...'

_Neon pink light ebbs out from the space beyond the door, illuminating the blue cladded turtle's features as his eyes are blown wide._

"Sweet. 'Bout time we just did something instead of trying to map out every single damn step," Raphael declares as a wicked, toothy grin stretches across his lips.

Michelangelo asks curiously, leaning forward on the tips of his toes to glance at the portal from above his older brother's shoulder, "So, who's going first? Should we like draw straws?"

Casey exclaims cockily as he points a finger to himself, "If you turtles are gonna be slow about it, I'm going!"

"Hey! Watch it with the turtle jokes," The purple cladded turtle snaps defensively.

"You're crazy! Nuts! Out of your gourd," The red cladded turtle barks out angrily before his brows scrunch together and his lips curl into a snarl as he shouts, "I'm going first!"

The orange cladded turtle abruptly calls out to his friends and brothers, reminding them, "Dudes, wait! What about Leo?"

Donatello gives a conceding tilt of his head, stating aloud, "You know, guys... I hate to say it - I mean, I really, really hate to say it. In fact, I don't know if I can say it without throwing the world out of rotation, but, maybe, Mikey is right," The purple cladded turtle admits, the bright pink glow pouring over his worried expression of tight lines in his skin and narrowed reddish-brown eyes, "I've checked over his head—twice—and he barely has a lump. It's certainly not an injury to be laid up in bed for."

"So, what? Do you think Leo is playing possum just so we'll leave him alone? Dude, this whole thing with him just keeps getting weirder and weirder," Michelangelo cuts in. 

Raphael hesitates for a second, some emotion resembling concern flickering across his features before he gives a rough toss of his head. "Okay, go get him up then. Tell him nap time is over and be quick about it!"

Donatello slowly makes his way across the lab to stand beside his older brother with his arms crossed over his chest, silently watching the youngest of the mutant turtles, until he is out of their very sensitive earshot. "If I had hair all of it would have fallen out by now. I don't know how much longer we can be expected to act like nothing is happening - like he isn't...isn't starting to lose himself..." He hunches his back and turns it to the humans, turning to his brother and uttering, "I can't stand it!"

"Yeah, well, neither can I, Don. But there ain't nothin' either of us can do about it," The red cladded turtle hisses back, "Even if Master Splinter didn't keep insistin' that we leave him to figure out whatever it is he's going through on his own, we both know that he wouldn't tell us squat! Hell, the dude has always had some kind of wacked out inferiority complex - He ain't gonna talk to us, or anyone for that matter because knowin' him he'll see it as some form of failure, for his own screwed up reasons."

Donatello's brows creased as his face tensed and he let out a barely audible grunt of acknowledgment. Leonardo had always been seen as a closed book, tight-lipped, a mask of brooding care, by their makeshift family for as long as he could remember.

"You know him better than any of us, Raph, and I would say even more than Master Splinter. If any of us could get him to open up, it would be -"

Michelangelo suddenly comes bursting back into the room, shouting, "Guys, he's not in the lair! And he left his t-phone in the bathroom!"

"Sounds like he's tryin' to ditch us - Oh, he is tryin' to get his tailed kicked, ain't he," The red cladded turtle declares as his right eye begins to twitch with annoyance and his teeth grit tightly into a toothy grimace, "Alright, hold off on the portal hoppin' for now. I've gotta go find our esteemed leader so I can wring his stinkin' neck until he is the blue turtle!"

"Raph, easy, bro," The orange cladded turtle urges in a soft voice, "Heel."

Raphael lets out a long, slow hiss from his nostrils that resembles a tea kettle, then he grits out, "Alright, Don - Any other way to find him?"

The purple cladded turtle asks in a dry tone, "What? Do you think I have him microchipped or something - ?"

"Dudes, seriously? We ain't got time for this, yo. We've got some ugly alien freaks to take care of! Remember," Casey groans aloud and he curls his hand around the human girl's bicep, then he begins to tug her in the direction of the portal, "C'mon, Red!"

April is snapped from her troubling thoughts as she begins to move from her spot unwillingly, and she exclaims, startled, "Hold on, Casey! Maybe we should listen. Leo is usually the one to - Ahhhh!"

Donatello immediately darts towards the flickering triangular form of the portal, yelling frantically as he waves his arms, "April, wait for me!"

"Damn it! It's startin' to close - C'mon, Mikey! We can't let them go in there without any decent fighters to back them up," Raphael barks out as he takes off in a sprint towards the blinking image of the portal, "Ain't no tellin' what's gonna be in there!"

Michelangelo puffs out his cheeks as he grumbles, "Even when I'm right I get the deaf ear. But he's right... can't let them go alone, I guess," Then his baby blue hues flicker towards the doorway leading out of the lab and he whispers to himself, "We'll find him later. He'll be fine. Shell, what am I worried for? Leo is the one turtle we almost never have to worry about..." He takes a deep inhale, slapping his hands together, and dives through the center of the portal.

"Okay. So maybe we should have hung back for a little while," Casey vocalizes as his eyes revolve around the wide-open space.

Stormy grey clouds fill the plane with the same luminous pink triangular portals lined up in two single-file rows on their left and right sides. Thunder rumbles in the distance and the portals warble in unison.

"Oh, and is that your expert opinion," Donatello demands incredulously," We just willingly threw ourselves into what is the equivalent of the Grand Central Station of dimensional travel without a ticket to ride-"

"Or depart - The door just closed," April shrieks in alarm.

Michelangelo cuts in as he slings an arm around his purple cladded brother's shoulder, giving him a reassuring smile," Don't worry, dude. We'll just poke our heads through each portal until we see our sewer, sweet sewer!"

"Oh, oof! My bad, Mikey. You're right," The purple cladded turtle utters, his voice dripping with sarcasm as he shoots his brother a tight-lipped grin in return," All we have to do is search for the doorway back to our dimension amongst an infinite amount of other doorways, all of which almost certainly lead to simultaneously horrifying and humorous deaths-"

Casey abruptly jumps in as he motions a gloved hand towards one of the many portals in the seemingly endless space," Uh, guys - Are you seeing what I'm seeing?"

April's eyes dart towards the portal the human boy is pointing at and her brows nearly shoot off of her forehead. "What in the -"

The three turtles and their two human friends huddle close together and peer curiously into the portal watching the scene unfold. Four stocky but muscular mutant turtles are sitting around in a dusty old shop filled to the brim with miscellaneous junk. A pizza box is situated on the counter, the top precariously balanced on the ancient cash register with a slender red-haired woman reaching into the box and gingerly peeling the melted cheese stuck to the cardboard as she grabbed a slice. She scowls and smacks at the fingerless gloved hand belonging to a gargantuan man with shoulder-length raven hair who curls his meaty hand into a fist, holding it to his chest as he glares at the much smaller human. The four turtles throw their heads back laugh in unison.

The red cladded turtle jabs his elbow into the blue cladded turtle's shoulder blade, making him fumble for his small slice of cheese pizza on a paper towel in his hands. The red cladded turtle leans over and whispers something to him, making the blue cladded turtle dart his gaze to the orange cladded turtle and he lets out a loud snort, giving a long, dramatic roll of his eyes as he mutters a critiquing remark underneath his breath. Then he leans over to whisper something back, cupping his hand around the latter's ear, then he sends him a wink as a small smile pulls at his lips.

The red cladded turtle let out a wry chuckle at whatever his older brother had said, turning to his younger purple cladded brother and asking him," Yo, Don? Ain't reptiles supposed to be all scale?"

The purple cladded turtle glances up from the book balanced on his knee, dipping down his own nibbled on slice of pizza onto his paper plate as he questions his younger brother in a derailed manner," Pardon?"

"It seems Mikey has hit that awkward age and grown a little fuzz," The red cladded turtle proclaims as he thumps the orange cladded turtle on the nostrils, making him snap his head upwards and away from  
his sixth slice of pizza with a grunt. His upper lip is covered in a thin layer of bright red tomato sauce with little pieces of mozzarella cheese sticking from the drying substance.

"Ah," The purple cladded turtle utters with a small amused smile as he reaches a hand forward and gently pats his younger brother's face, careful to avoid the mess of pizza remains," Mozel tov, Mike. You're a man now!"

The bumbling orange cladded turtle stammers as he clumsily rubs his greasy hand over his face, spreading the sauce of over his chin. "Wha...?"

"Is...is that us," Raphael barks out in surprise, the pink glow of the portal splaying over this green features as he stares at his two-dimensional counterpart.

"It is us! But we look like totally -"

"Two dimensional," Donatello concludes, tapping his chin in thought," And practically quintuplets if it wasn't for the slightly different skin tones and mask colors."

Raphael demands in a rough tone, snapping his head towards the two humans, "Are we really that hard to tell apart?"

"No. Not at all," April quickly denies.

The red cladded turtle motions a hand towards his counterpart, groaning , "And what is with that guy's voice? He sounds like a damn chain smoker!"

"Who cares about you guys?! Look at me! I'm buff," Casey exclaims as he clutches his toned bicep, grinning cheekily at the redhead.

The purple cladded turtle points a shaky finger towards the red-headed woman in the portal, muttering with a small droplet of drool cascading down the side of his mouth," So I guess that makes h-her April, huh? Whoa...she's wearing a-a..." His green skin turns a violent shade of scarlet as he chokes out,"...c-crop top."

Consciously, April glances down over her own body with an embarrassed flush washing over her face and ears. Then with a grimace, she swipes her hand through the air, silencing the rambunctious group as she declares," Hold up, ninjas! We're not alone."

"D-did she just...?" Michelangelo utters slapping his hands over his mouth to muffle his snigger as his baby blue hues goggle at the human girl.

Raphael frowns deeply as he crosses his muscular arms over his plastron and states," Yeah, she did. And, boy, was it creepy."

"I think you just did some kind of weird impression of, uh, Leo," Donatello tells her with one brow cocked and his mouth twisted as if he just bit into a lemon.

April squeaks out, "Well someone needed to," Then she shakes her head while turning it away from the group to try and hide the visible blush painting her cheeks," It...it doesn't matter! Look!"

The group follows her pointed fingers to one of the portals a few feet away from where they're all standing in a semicircle. Pink lightning bursts from within, striking randomly around the misty plane. Two Kraang in hovering robotic shells breach from the portal with a burst of light and a low warbling sound.

"Oh, shit," The red cladded turtle curses as he draws out his sais.

"Not good," The purple cladded turtle yells in alarm, quickly yanking out his bo staff from its sheath.

The orange cladded turtle twirls his nunchaku around himself as he bounces from foot to foot and squawks out," Looks like we're fighting our way out! Any plans, guys?"

"Wha - No! Leonard - Oh...." Raphael trails off in realization as more Kraang in their various robotic forms steadily stream out from the portal," Leo ain't here!"

"Brilliant! Just brilliant! Any actual ideas?! No...? Fine," Donatello grits out as he glances back and forth amongst the group as they all begin to back away from the growing wave of the multi-tentacled, brain creatures," Looks like we're improvising!"

A burst from a pink laser splits the group apart with simultaneous yells of shock and pain. Then they're abruptly thrown into battle with their respective foes as the aliens try and overwhelm the group of mutants and humans. The ear-shattering noise of metal against metal, the harsh panting of exertion, and the nonsensical beeping and warbling of the aliens is the only noise that echoes across the limitless expanse. The red cladded cries out as he's thrown backward by one of the bioroids and sent stumbling against his younger brother, who yelps loudly, and sends both of them plummeting through one of the many portals. With a flash of brilliant pink light, the portal collapses in on itself, the screams of the two mutant turtles still resounding through the space as the two humans and the purple cladded turtle stare at the empty space in shock.

———

"Isn't this just fantastic?! First, we lost our leader, and now we've lost our smart guy," Raphael barks out in anger, slamming his fist on the inside of the dumpster in the alley they'd landed in.

"Hey! We've still got each other, dude. We can be like the ultimate dream team!"

Raphael replies in a mockingly cheerful tone, "Oh, yeah! The hothead and the bonehead - What a team we'll be," He gives a lengthy roll of his eyes, then he tenses, curling his fingers around his brother's bicep as he utters, "Can it, Mikey! We're not alone..."

There's the faint scuffle of unsteady footsteps coming down the alleyway, and a beer bottle clinks softly as it rolls across the concrete and bumps against the dumpster.

"Raph," Michelangelo yelps when a hand snaps forward and seizes his belt, hoisting him upwards as another hand rests a blade against the base of his throat.

"What the - Mikey," Leonardo yelps in surprise as he peers into the dumpster, quickly releasing his crushing hold on his brother, the latter giving a shrill shriek as he crashes back down onto his bottom. Then when he sees an all too familiar flash of red as another mutant turtle stumbles upwards in the dumpster, sliding over great swathes of browning banana peels, crumpled cans, and other articles of trash, then the blue cladded turtle goes on to exclaim," Raph? Wha...what the - H-how are y-you...? How did you get here?"

Raphael bursts from the depths of the dumpster and he growls, "Leo? Where the shell have you been - !"

The blue cladded turtle takes a step back and his throat bobs as he gulps loudly. "I-I was with y-you..." He gasps out, his grip on the shuriken in his hand unsteady as his hand begins to tremble, "B-but...I-I don't know how I got here... I remember l-leaving the l-lair with you, b-but I don't remember w-walking... a-after that..." He is cut off as a fresh sharp burst of pain explodes in the middle of his forehead and colorful dots dance in his vision. He let out a strained moan.

_Leonardo gasps as Tiger Claw—Takeshi—slams him into the alleyway wall, digging his sinewy arm into his windpipe as he leans down to whisper, "You're drowning..."_

"No," Leonardo denies aloud, fingers raking the side of his head.

_Scarlet blooms in his vision. His katana blade clatters onto the concrete below, falling from his loose, fumbling fingers._

Raphael yaps out, "Whoa, whoa, don't you think about tryin' to drag me into your screwy crap! I've just about had enough of that lately, bro!"

"No, no, no," The blue cladded turtle denies pitifully, slowly shaking his head side to side. He grits his teeth together as another sharp burst of pain explodes in his head and with his voice strained he yells, "No! I was with you, Raph! You led me to...t-t-t...t-to... I-I don't remember how I got h-here. I d-don't even remember b-before that..."

The red cladded turtle's accusing green eyes abruptly soften, and his brows scrunch together as he takes in the sight of his brother,"...Leo? Dude, are you okay," With a raised eye ridge he set a palm against his older brother's forehead. The latter had a fever that made him imagine his green reptilian skin an unsightly shade of lobster red. He swallows, and slowly removes his palm from his brother's head, and turns to his younger brother, informing him, "Shit, he's burning up. Shell, Leo - Something ain't right with him! I told you guys - I fuckin' - When we get back to the lair we ain't doing no more of that beatin' around the bush nonsense, alright?"

"No, no, Raph - Raphael! I'm fine. It's just...it's just... I-I was with you..." Tension built its way up through Leonardo, roiling in his gut and mixing with the panic that was tightening within his chest.

Raphael concedes as his mouth straightens into a thin line, "O-okay, well I'm here now, big brother. That's what matters, right," He grips the side of the latter's face, giving it a light shake and his eyes widen at the sight of the blue cladded turtle. His cheeks have a feverish red flush to them, and a sheen of sweat was gathering just above his brow line and the tremors ran through his body, "Hey, look at me! Put the damn shuriken down before you poke someone's stinkin' eye out and just look at me! You see this, you see me - I'm real, okay," Then he clenches two fingers down on his older brother's cheek, pinching it in a tight grip, eliciting a pained hiss from him, "You see? Whatever the hell is goin' through your whacked out green gourd, it's got nothin' to do with me 'cause I'm here... I'm here with you, you see? So just simmer down so I can try and sort this whole damn mess out, then I'm gonna take care of you, okay?"

"He's right, dude. It's gonna be fine. Just take a step back and let us get a handle on this, okay, big bro," Michelangelo gently urges, settling his fingers on the edge of his older brother's shoulder blade.

Leonardo abruptly twists away from his younger brother, weakly snapping, "No. N-no, I don't, I... I-I don't - I can't know that!"

"I'll deal with you later, Fearless," The red cladded turtle grunts out impatiently, "But first I've gotta figure out how the shell to get Don, Casey, and April out of that crap-hole of a dimension!"

The blue cladded turtle inquires, glancing up with squinted eyes, "The others are trapped in another dimension?"

Raphael snorts out as he throws his hands into the air in frustration, "Oh, great. I thought it was gonna take you a little longer to figure out, so the marching band won't be here until this evening! Yes, another dimension!"

"A-another dimension," Leonardo repeats dumbly, his mouth falling slack and he pushes the pain into the back of his mind. He hurriedly shoves the shuriken into his wrappings as he goes on to ask, "How in the shell...?!"

Raphael interjects, "Yeah, and the smart member of the team is trapped with them. So next time you plan to pull a disappearing act do us a favor and leave a note -"

"Stop it. Stop. Just...just be quiet, okay," The blue cladded turtle chokes out as his fingers come to rest on his temples and he begins to knead circles against them. He stumbles sideways leaning against the brick wall of the alleyway as his heart thumps rapidly in his chest and darkness begins to push in from the corners of the vision, "R-Raph...Something is...is w-wrong... I-I don't...I don't feel -"

"...Leo?"

"Leo?"

" _Leonardo_?"


End file.
